German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier does not rule out Russia may annex part of Ukrainian territory to ensure land access to Crimea and believes a threat of a direct military conflict between Russia and Ukraine is real, reports GHN based on Ukrinform.
He said this in an interview with the Markische Allgemeine newspaper published on Monday, Deutsche Welle reported.
According to the German diplomat, a new attempt by Russia to annex part of Ukraine is not ruled out, because it faces difficulty with making supplies to the illegally annexed peninsula. However, "Russian land corridors would be the ones contradicting international law and worthy of condemnation as Russia's annexation of Crimea," Steinmeier said.
He also said that there was a threat of "direct military confrontation between Ukraine and Russia" because of the decision by the European Union to strengthen economic and political pressure on Russia.