Representatives of the left wing of the Social Democratic Party of Germany, whose leader is the current Chancellor Olaf Scholz, called for an end to the supply of heavy weapons to Ukraine and for peace negotiations with Russia.

 This was reported by Spiegel, which has obtained the letter from the Social Democrats.

 Its signatories include several members of the Bundestag, the European Parliament and the federal states, as well as the former prime minister of the state of Bremen, Carsten Zilling, and the mayor of Dortmund, Thomas Westphal.

 "The continuation of the war will only lead to more casualties and destruction. We need a cease-fire as soon as possible as a starting point for comprehensive peace negotiations," the letter says.

 The Social Democrats admit that an improvement in relations with Russia is possible only after the departure of Vladimir Putin from power, "but in the meantime we need to find a modus vivendi ("way of life") with the Russian government, which recognizes a reality that it may not like, which excludes further escalation of war".

 The signatories of the letter call on the EU and member states to step up diplomatic efforts with some countries "to incline them to a mediating role between the warring parties." Among such countries, China is mentioned, in particular.

 The leftists also oppose the supply of heavy weapons to Ukraine and point to the danger of a nuclear war: "With each supply of weapons, it is important to carefully weigh where the "red line" passes, which can be perceived as an entry into the war and cause a reaction in return."

 Earlier, an official representative of the German Ministry of Defense stated that the department rejected the proposal of Bundestag members from the ruling coalition to supply Ukraine with more weapons and, if necessary, to agree to the weakening of the Bundeswehr.

 German mass media reported that the German government has been ignoring Ukraine's requests for additional arms supplies for the past ten weeks.