German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said it was “absolutely imperative” for some leaders to speak directly with Russian President Vladimir Putin amid efforts to end the war in Ukraine, the Associated Press reported.

Schultz and French President Emmanuel Macron have had several telephone conversations with Putin, individually and together, since the start of Russia’s attack on Ukraine in late February.

These contacts have sparked criticism, some of which has come from Polish President Andrzej Duda, who recently felt that these leaders “achieve nothing and only serve to legitimize the Russian leader.”

And on Thursday, during a visit to Kyiv, Schultz promised to support Ukraine’s candidacy for possible membership in the European Union.

On February 24, Russia launched an attack on Ukraine, followed by an international denial and economic sanctions against Moscow amid a global crisis in food supplies, especially wheat, of which the two countries are among the largest exporters.