"The war in Ukraine continues, Russia continues to act cruelly against the civilian population," Merz said, speaking at an ARD program."We are all thinking about how to end this war. The question is how to achieve this," he added, saying nobody is asking a question about a peacekeeper deployment.The comments come amid an escalating election campaign as Germany approaches a snap vote in February.While Merz has criticized Social Democrat Chancellor Olaf Scholz for his supposed hesitance in supporting Ukraine — particularly concerning the provision of Taurus missiles — his views on troop deployment appear to be closer to those of the incumbent chancellor.Speaking in Germany's parliament, Scholz ruled out the possibility of deploying German troops to Ukraine at this stage. He stressed that there is an agreement with Baerbock and Defense Minister Boris Pistorius on the matter, adding that the Green Party's foreign minister was giving a "diplomatic answer" about a future hypothetical situation.The chancellor avoided a question about deploying peacekeepers after a possible ceasefire.