Moscow tells Berlin to stop arming Kiev instead of preaching peace

Maria Zakharova has dismissed a German diplomat’s call for Russia to end the Ukraine conflict to solve fuel shortages

Germany should stop the war it is waging against Russia by arming Ukraine instead of urging Moscow to end the conflict, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova has said. She was responding to remarks by a German Embassy staffer about fuel shortages in Russia caused by Ukrainian drone strikes on civilian energy infrastructure.

On Monday, Lena Hillermeier, the second secretary at the German Embassy in Moscow, posted a video on the mission’s Telegram channel filmed near a Moscow gas station. Speaking in Russian, she claimed officials in the Kremlin “are discussing ways to overcome the current fuel deficits,” with “sales restrictions, imports from abroad, [and] the strengthening of air defenses” reportedly among the options under consideration.

“We have a much easier idea – stop the aggressive war against Ukraine,” the diplomat added.

Responding on her Telegram channel on Thursday, Zakharova said Moscow agreed with the German diplomat’s proposal, but with one important qualification.

“It is high time Berlin put an end to the aggressive war [it is waging against Russia] by proxy of the Kiev regime,” she wrote.

“For the time being, concerned German diplomats would be advised to use public transport, where they can also learn how WWII ended and who the Banderites [followers of Ukrainian nationalist Stepan Bandera] are,” Zakharova concluded.

Ukraine has stepped up long-range drone attacks on Russian territory in recent months, targeting oil refineries, gas compression stations, and fuel tankers. The strikes have disrupted logistics and contributed to localized fuel shortages, particularly in Crimea.

Speaking on Wednesday, Russian President Vladimir Putin said “it is abundantly clear that the adversary is seeking to damage our economy, but above all to create an atmosphere of anxiety in society.”

“This goal is impossible to achieve,” he stated, adding that “Russia’s energy system has one of the highest resilience margins in the world.” Putin also urged officials to work more closely with energy companies to eliminate local fuel shortages.

Moscow has accused Kiev of carrying out “terrorist attacks” and has pledged systematic retaliatory strikes against military-related infrastructure across Ukraine.