In joust with Putin, Germany's Scholz displays more assertive style

FILE PHOTO: FILE PHOTO: German Chancellor Olaf Scholz looks on as he attends a wreath-laying ceremony at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier by the Kremlin Wall in Moscow, Russia February 15, 2022. REUTERS/Maxim Shemetov/Pool/File Photo/File Photo

(This Feb 15 story has has been refiled to correct year in paragraph five)

MOSCOW/BERLIN (Reuters) - German Chancellor Olaf Scholz has been accused of weak leadership in the Ukraine crisis and being soft on Russia. Yet on his visit to the Kremlin on Tuesday, he not only stood up to Russian President Vladimir Putin, he seemed to relish it.