After Scholz’s visit to Kyiv
His “liver sausage” comparison caused an outcry. Now Ambassador Melnyk wants to apologize to the Chancellor
Ukraine’s Ambassador Andriy Melnyk regrets his “liver sausage” statement to Chancellor Olaf Scholz
© Michael Kappeler / DPA
His “liver sausage” comparison had triggered a storm of indignation: Now the Ukrainian ambassador Andriy Melnyk wants to apologize to Chancellor Olaf Scholz for his words. After much hesitation, Scholz traveled to Kyiv in mid-June.
The Ukrainian Ambassador to Germany, Andriy Melnyk, wants to apologize to Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD) for his controversial “liver sausage” statement. “That’s a statement that I later regret, of course,” Melnyk told the “Spiegel” in an interview published on Wednesday. “I will personally apologize to him,” he announced.
The statement was “diplomatically inappropriate” and “offended many people, not only in Germany,” Melnyk said. The background was Scholz’s decision at the beginning of May not to travel to Ukraine for the time being. Scholz justified this by saying that Federal President Frank-Walter Steinmeier was not welcome there at the time. Melnyk then said that the chancellor was playing “an offended liverwurst”.
Olaf Scholz calls for “Marshall Plan” for Ukraine after visit
After much hesitation, Scholz then visited Ukraine in mid-June. Steinmeier had previously had a telephone conversation with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. Steinmeier had previously been accused of pro-Russian policies in Ukraine during his time as foreign minister.
In his government statement on Wednesday, Scholz called for a “Marshall Plan” for the reconstruction of war-torn Ukraine. During his visit to Kyiv last week, some things reminded him of the images of German cities after the Second World War, said the SPD politician in the Bundestag. “And like war-ravaged Europe then, Ukraine needs a Marshall Plan for reconstruction today.”
Between 1948 and 1952, the USA helped Germany and other European countries with their Marshall Plan to get back on their feet after six years of war.