Germany calls on Russia to ‘stop playing with people’s lives’

BERLIN (AA) - Germany on Monday called on Russia to stop “playing with people’s lives” and return to the negotiating table for a peaceful solution to the Ukraine crisis.

Speaking to reporters in Brussels, German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock expressed deep concern over escalating tensions in eastern Ukraine, with growing number of cease-fire violations in recent days.

“The Russian government is really playing with people’s lives in the occupied territories, this is irresponsible,” she said, referring to the reports of increased shelling from the Donetsk and Luhansk regions, controlled by pro-Russian separatists.

“I am making an urgent appeal to the Russian president, please don’t play with human lives. What we have witnessed in the region over the last 72 hours, with attacks, violent clashes, is really concerning,” she said.

Baerbock urged Moscow to step back from its threats towards Ukraine, and return to the negotiating table, to find a diplomatic solution to the current crisis.

She also underlined the European Union’s strong solidarity with Ukraine, and said her Ukrainian counterpart Dmytro Kuleba will join the EU foreign ministers meeting later in the day to discuss the latest developments.

French President Emmanuel Macron held several phone calls with Russian President Vladimir Putin and US President Joe Biden on Sunday to de-escalate tensions, and organize a summit to avert war in Ukraine.

Kremlin’s spokesman Dmitry Peskov did not rule out a new meeting between Putin and Biden, but told reporters on Monday that there are no "concrete plans" yet for such a summit.

The US administration has accused Russia of amassing nearly 150,000 troops along the Ukrainian border, and claimed that Moscow was planning to manufacture a pretext to invade Ukraine in the coming days.

Moscow has repeatedly denied any plan to invade Ukraine and instead accused Western countries of undermining Russia’s security through NATO’s expansion toward its borders.