He was forced to resign for praising Putin: Former German Admiral speaks out: "Ukraine's successes are exaggerated"

In January 2022, then-German Navy Chief Admiral Kay-Achim Schönbach attended a conference in New Delhi, India, two months before the Ukraine-Russia war. His remarks at the conference caused great astonishment. In his speech, retired Admiral Schönbach stated that Russian President Vladimir Putin deserved respect. Following these remarks, a media lynching campaign began. After the backlash, Schönbach resigned from his post. Admiral Schönbach spoke to Harici.com Editor-in-Chief Tunç Akkoç about all these events and many other topics.

Schönbach's remarks at the January 2022 New Delhi conference regarding Putin, “What Putin really wants is respect… And God knows, giving someone respect is low cost, even no cost. It is easy to give the respect he demands and probably deserves,” had sparked controversy. Emphasizing that the speech was recorded secretly, he recounted those days as follows:

“During the second part, it was recorded with a cell phone camera without anyone's knowledge, and my statements were extracted from this recording. First of all, I would like to say that if I had known it was being recorded, I would have said it anyway. But then at least I could have explained to the viewers what kind of setup this was. Then it would have been understood that the statements were relatively unsensational. And in two important statements, one of which was shortened—at least that's how it was in the media—I clearly stated that Crimea was gone and would not come back. What this actually means is that the Russian Federation will not give Crimea back voluntarily, which is not very difficult to grasp. The second was the question asked by a young lady in the room about how Ukraine could be saved or protected, and during this conversation, I said that the issue could be solved with mutual respect and by listening to each other.”

Admiral Schönbach, who resigned from his position as Chief of the German Navy following the events, stated that he would not have resigned if there had not been a media campaign against him.

Commenting on the Russia-Ukraine war, Schönbach noted through the media that Ukraine's success is exaggerated. Schönbach added the following to his words:

“The Russian defense is very good, a tremendous defense, as they already proved in the Second World War. The Ukrainian army has suffered many losses, and the Russian army the same, but that is the big difference. I am of the opinion that the news published over time was unfortunate because many successes of the Ukrainian army—which I would give credit for if they were real, I want to clarify this too—gave the impression that they were already at the gates of Moscow. But in fact, a relatively small area was recaptured, I think 350 or 360 square kilometers were retaken. This is a relatively small area, and in this respect, it is disappointing. Furthermore, the loss of soldiers that the Ukrainian army had to suffer in the background is an added burden.”

Stating that the election results in the US will also have a major impact on the Russia-Ukraine war, Admiral Schönbach said that everything could change if former US President Donald Trump is re-elected.

Admiral Schönbach also evaluated Turkey's situation. Stating that Turkey should not leave NATO, Schönbach pointed out the following:

“Of course, Turkey has now consolidated its ties with the East and its historical ties with the Turkic states more than it did in the past. Turkey has the power to assert its view in the region, and I have long seen how strongly what is said in Ankara or Istanbul is heard, and I am interested in this. And I think especially now, Turkey plays an important role during this resurgence, especially now in the conflict in the Middle East. Turkey should not leave NATO. I don't think there is any real engagement or intention in that direction. I think that rapprochement with the European Union as an associated state or in another form will come to the agenda again in the future. It should not turn its back on the West. However, I understand that it has a special importance due to the influence of historical ties that go back to the Ottoman Empire in the past, at least that is how it is seen.”

News Source: 12punto