Ukraine’s ambassador to Germany, Andrey Melnik, has revealed he “regrets” calling the country’s chancellor, Olaf Scholz, an “offended liverwurst” back in May. The diplomat made the admission while speaking to German newspaper Der Spiegel on Wednesday.
“That’s a statement that I regretted later, of course. I’ll apologize to [Scholz] personally,” Melnik said.
The ambassador had described Scholz as an “offended liverwurst” over his refusal to pay a visit to Kiev back in May. Scholz’s decision was prompted by Kiev’s refusal to receive German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier in mid-April over his apparently overly close ties with Russia.
Melnik had previously stood by his liverwurst remark, explicitly refusing to apologize for it. “It’s not a matter of apologizing. It’s not about whether someone feels offended or not, it’s about whether they will help us save people,” Melnik said shortly after insulting Scholz.