According to her own words, former Chancellor Angela Merkel did not perceive Kremlin leader Vladimir Putin as a brazen liar right from the start. At the beginning of her time as Chancellor, Putin did not shamelessly lie, Merkel said, according to the English translation, in an interview with CNN conducted by journalist Christiane Amanpour. Amanpour asked the former CDU leader how one could negotiate with a liar like Putin.
Referring to Russia’s annexation of Ukraine’s Crimean Peninsula, Merkel said that Putin later confessed that he had lied about it. This was a turning point in her relationship with the Russian president, said the former chancellor. From then on she knew that she had to be very careful when dealing with Putin. Putin doesn’t ask what Ukraine wants. Merkel further emphasized that she wanted Ukraine to decide its own fate at some point.
In recent days, the former chancellor has been promoting her memoirs entitled “Freedom. Memories 1954-2021” in the USA. She appeared in TV interviews and also appeared together with former US President Barack Obama in Washington.
Merkel describes in her book that Putin knew about her fear of dogs at a meeting in 2007 and deliberately let his Labrador into the room to cause her distress. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov then said that Putin only wanted to create a cozy atmosphere by bringing his dog into the negotiating room. In an interview with Amanpour, the ex-Chancellor emphasized that it was unlikely that Putin did not know about her fear of dogs. It was basically a power play.