Then CBS Inviting German Chancellor Olaf Scholz for an exclusive interview during the NATO summit in Madrid last week, the war between Ukraine and Russian President Vladimir Putin became an inevitable topic.

One of the first questions from CBS host Margaret Brennan was whether Putin cared about the sanctions the country had imposed since he launched the invasion in late February.

– I think he cares, but he doesn’t really want to admit it. So you get a certain impression that it’s really affecting him and that he understands the profound effect the sanctions have on the Russian economy, Scholz said in an interview published on Sunday.

– This is happening now with a country that is not too far ahead, and which urgently needs technology from all over the world to have the same standard of living and have the opportunity to be part of the growing world economy. And this is real damage to the economy; that they don’t have the opportunity to do this, he continued.

– Can last for a very long time

The chancellor dared not say when Putin’s war chest was empty, or how long the war could last.

– He may be the leader of a very large country with a large population and huge resources. He has been preparing for this brutal war for a very long time and will be able to continue it for a very long time, he said.

Following the takeover of the city of Lysychansk over the weekend, Putin on Monday ordered a continuation of the offensive in eastern Ukraine, where almost the entire province of Luhansk is now under Russian control.

– Can’t buy anything

CBS further highlights Germany’s Ukraine support of about $2 billion, which roughly corresponds to what the country spends per month on gas, coal and energy from Russia. Thus, Germany also contributed greatly in giving Russia a financial buoy.

– Putin can’t buy anything for the money he gets from us, because he has all the sanctions on the import of modern technology and the things he’s looking for. This is what makes him so angry. But to be very clear; when we and our allies decide to impose sanctions, we will do so in a way that affects Putin more than we do. Many countries in Europe depend on gas imports, and when the whole of Europe has decided to get out of this dependence, this will change the scenario – even on world markets, Scholz replied.

According to the Chancellor, Germany is no longer sending $2 billion a month to Russia.

– The numbers are falling all the time. As I said, we are designing sanctions to hit Putin. At the same time, we are making real investments in technology, pipelines and ports. Once you make a decision one night, people sometimes think you have a port and a 40-kilometer pipeline the next morning. But in reality that is not what happened, he continued.

– When Europe decides to end imports of Russian gas, this will have consequences, added Scholz.