German navy chief resigns over Ukraine remarks
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Following statements over Western allegations about Russia planning to invade Ukraine and praising the Russian president, Germany's head of navy submits his resignation.
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Kay-Achim Schoenbach had said the idea that Western allegations about Russia planning to invade Ukraine were "nonsense".
The head of Germany's navy has resigned following statements on the crisis in Ukraine, a defense ministry spokesperson announced on Saturday.
Kay-Achim Schonbach had said the idea that Western allegations about Russia planning to invade Ukraine were "nonsense", adding that Russian President Vladimir Putin deserved respect, in comments at a think-tank meeting in New Delhi on Friday.
Ukrainian "disappointment"
Earlier, the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry summoned the German Ambassador to Kyiv, Anka Feldguzen, to express "disappointment" over Berlin's stance on the Ukrainian crisis.
Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said that Germany's recent statements about the impossibility of transferring defense weapons to Ukraine, the futility of returning Crimea, and doubts about disconnecting Russia from SWIFT, do not correspond to the level of the bilateral relations.
"We pointed out the categorical unacceptability of the statements of the head of the German navy, Vice Adm. Kay-Achim Schonbach, in particular, that the Crimea will never return to Ukraine and that our state cannot meet the criteria for membership in NATO," the ministry expressed in a statement.
"We also expressed deep disappointment at the position of the German government on the failure to provide defensive weapons to Ukraine," the statement read.
What did the Germans say?
German Defence Minister Christine Lambrecht has confirmed that Berlin will send a field hospital to Ukraine, while once again rejecting Kyiv's calls for weapons.
Berlin has already delivered respirators to Ukraine and is treating injured Ukrainian soldiers in Bundeswehr hospitals, she told Welt am Sonntag newspaper.
"Weapons deliveries would not be helpful at the moment -- that is the consensus within the government," Lambrecht said.
This comes as the US Embassy in Kyiv announced Friday that the US has delivered 90,7 tonnes of lethal aid to Ukraine in a new "military assistance initiative" overseen by US President Joe Biden.
