Merkel Warns of Isolating Russia After Putin’s ‘Big Mistake’
- ‘No excuse for this brutal aggression,’ former chancellor says
- Former chancellor has made calls to Putin behind the scenes
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Former German Chancellor Angela Merkel warned that isolating Russia isn’t possible long term even if President Vladimir Putin made a “big mistake” by invading Ukraine.
“There’s no excuse for this brutal aggression,” the 67-year-old said on Tuesday in an on-stage interview at a theater in central Berlin as part of her tentative return to the public arena. While she has remained active behind the scenes, it was her first public appearance in front of a larger audience since leaving office in December.