German Defence Minister compares Putin to Hitler

German Defence Minister Boris Pistorius has compared Putin's war against Ukraine to Hitler's annexation of Czechoslovakia in 1938 and said that Europe should prepare for a large-scale Russian attack.

As reported by Bloomberg, at the presentation of a new biographical book about Winston Churchill, he stressed that Russian leader Vladimir Putin would not stop when the war against Ukraine is over.

"He has also said that clearly. Just as clearly as (Nazi Germany's leader Adolf) Hitler, who also always said that he would not stop," Pistorius said.

At the same time, he called Churchill a strong leader with a clear vision in difficult times. He said that when faced with war, people choose a leader "whom they trust and whom they follow, even though he presents the world in ugly terms".

Pistorius reiterated his call for an easing of Germany's debt ceiling to help bolster its military after a €100bn special off-budget fund runs out in 2027.

"We have to put this country back in a position where it can defend itself. We have to decide now whether we want to prepare for a genuine threat from Putin to materialise or whether we want to make it easy for him," he concluded.

Earlier, EU Chief Diplomat Josep Borrell said that a full-scale conflict in Europe was no longer a fantasy, and Europeans must find new ways to fund preparations for a potentially wider war on the continent.

French President Emmanuel Macron stated in February that Russia may attack NATO countries within the next few years, as evidenced by Moscow's actions in recent weeks.

Pistorius said in January that NATO must prepare for a Russian attack on a NATO country within 5-8 years.

Micael Bydén, Supreme Commander of the Swedish Armed Forces, and Carl-Oskar Bohlin, Swedish Minister for Civil Defence, have stated that all citizens of the country must be ready for war.