German Chancellor rejects calls to sanction Russia now — argues the West should keep Putin guessing

Germany's Chancellor said that Moscow should not be sure how the West will respond to a potential invasion.

Speaking to CNBC's Hadley Gamble at Germany's annual Munich Security Conference, Scholz said that Western allies were prepared to sanction Russia quickly. He said that the measures should remain a last resort in order to find a peaceful resolution to the tensions.

We want to avoid the situation, so we want to do it then.

Multiple Western officials said this week that Russia is increasing its military presence on its border, despite the country's denials.

Scholz would not say what sanctions Russia would be hit with if it invaded Ukraine. He said that Moscow should not be aware of the repercussions it would face.

The Russian government cannot be really sure exactly what we’ll do.

Western leaders have made comments about how Russia could be hurt economically, most notably through energy sanctions.

It makes no sense to make them public. He said it was good for what the Russian government can't be sure of.

They will know what we're talking about, but they won't know exactly.

His comments come after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky called for sanctions against Russia.

Zelensky said at the conference that they have a right to demand a shift from a policy of appeasement to one that ensures security and peace.

There is no such thing as a war in the 21st century. This isn't about the war in Ukraine, it's about the war in Europe.

Russia on Saturday launched missiles as part of a planned exercise of the strategic deterrence forces.

In the coming days, the United States believes that Russian President Vladimir Putin may launch an attack on Ukraine, according to President Joe Biden.

We have reason to believe that the Russian forces are planning and intend to attackUkraine in the coming week, Biden said at the White House.

Service members of the Ukrainian Air Assault Forces take part in tactical drills at a training ground in an unknown location in Ukraine, in this handout picture released February 18, 2022.

It comes after the U.S. intelligence agencies said that Moscow had added around 7,000 troops to the border. Russian forces are posted in the ally of the north of Ukraine.

The Russian government claimed this week that it had begun to bring some of its troops back to their bases. Western officials urged caution over taking Moscow's claim at face value.

Russia may create a false flag event in which it would stage a real attack on its own forces in order to create an excuse to invade Ukraine.

The report was contributed byNatasha Turak.