Volkswagen chief calls for Ukraine deal with Putin

Volkswagen chief calls for Ukraine deal with Putin

The chief executive of Volkswagen has called for a negotiated settlement between Russia and Ukraine so that sanctions can be lifted to avoid damaging the German economy. Herbert Diess said that Brussels should be pushing for a peace deal so that free trade can resume to protect the European Union's commercial interests. The comments drew an immediate hostile response from Ukrainian leaders, who said that Mr Diess should instead focus on persuading Vladimir Putin to end his illegal invasion and attacks on civilians. Speaking at an industry summit organised by the Financial Times, Mr Diess said: “I think we should do the utmost to really stop this war and get back to negotiations and get back to trying to open up the world again. “I think we should not give up on open markets and free trade and I think we should not give up on negotiating and trying to settle.” He added that if global trade continues to struggle, “Europe will suffer most, and Germany, but I think it will be bad for the whole world”. Dmytro Kuleba, Ukraine’s foreign minister, said: “The best strategy for major German businesses would be to fully sever business ties with Russia and