As reported by DW, Friedrich Merz, the candidate for German chancellor from the opposition bloc, suggested that Germany, Poland, France, and the UK form a contact group to establish Europe’s post-war structure after the Russian war in Ukraine comes to a conclusion.
Merz opines that these four countries have the potential and opportunity to influence the formation of European political order. Merz added that proposals for a peace plan should be put forward by partners in close coordination so that the countries of Eastern Europe, particularly Ukraine, do not get the feeling that “the political map of Europe is being redrawn behind their backs.”
Earlier, Merz said that Ukraine would not be able to defeat Russia militarily, so the main task was to force Russia to stop attacking.
“We must do everything possible, so the Russian Federation sees the futility of continuing the war using military force. And we are still very far from that,” he said, admitting that the allies were late in helping Ukraine and started acting too late.