German Finance Minister: Russia Must Not Prevail in Iran Conflict

WASHINGTON, April 16 — German Finance Minister Lars Klingbeil spoke at the IMF spring meetings in Washington. He said a Russian win in the Iran conflict would not serve U.S. interests. Klingbeil also warned that Russia must not prevail.

Remarks at the IMF spring meetings

Klingbeil made the comments on the sidelines of the International Monetary Fund gathering. He issued a joint statement with the finance ministers of Ukraine and Norway. The Middle East crisis dominated discussions this week.

Economic effects of the Middle East conflict

The German minister noted Russia’s economy is growing amid the turmoil. He said Moscow is profiting from current energy market conditions. Those gains raised concern among attendees.

Support for Ukraine and international coordination

There was a separate meeting backing Ukraine on Thursday. Fifteen donor countries took part, including the United States. Klingbeil stressed it mattered that the U.S. was at the table.

On Wednesday, a G7 meeting also addressed the situation. The U.S. participated but its Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent did not attend. Klingbeil said Ukrainian Finance Minister Serhiy Marchenko’s briefing drew strong solidarity.

EU loan package and Hungary

Klingbeil welcomed recent election results in Hungary. He linked those results to progress on a long-delayed EU loan for Ukraine. The package totals 90 billion euros, he said.

The euro conversion at the time was about $1 = 0.8490 euros. Klingbeil said the Hungarian outcome opened a path toward approving the loan.

Reporting for Filmogaz.com by Christian Kraemer; writing by Maria Martinez; editing by Toby Chopra.