A veil of silence covers the former German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder. After the mysterious mediation for the Ukrainian with his best friend Vladimir Putin returned to Hanover, but did not want to reveal exactly what he said to Putin during their 5-hour meeting. Suffice it to say that he does not want to be an honorary citizen of the city of Hanover. It essentially prevented what the municipal authorities had launched.
The German government rejects sanctions against Schroeder
In the meantime, things are being said about him that would have been unheard of a few days ago. The representative of the Christian Union Bradt calls for Schroeder to be added to EU sanctions list sanctions. Brad accuses the German government of refraining from making decisions about a key figure in President Putin’s entourage, including former German Chancellor Schroeder. Speaking to Tagesspiegel, Bradt stressed that Chancellor Soltz must ensure that “Schroeder, who was personally promoted by Putin’s leading position in the Russian energy sector and receives hundreds of thousands of euros in representing the Russian president’s interests, is finally sanctioned,” he said. “Many Social Democrats turn their stomachs every day when they have to see this situation.”
In response Undersecretary of State for Foreign Affairs Andreas Michaelis To the German newspaper such a request has so far been rejected: “The former chancellor and Nord Stream 2 AG are not subject to sanctions, the EU reacted quickly to the Russian military aggression against Ukraine and imposed comprehensive sanctions against individuals, financial sanctions, restrictions “The ministry recalls that so far 511 people and two entities have been sanctioned. Nord Stream and Rosneft, or admitted to Gazprom’s supervisory board, was left open by the German government, in which case his bank accounts would have to be frozen and he would not be able to travel freely in Europe.
20 million euros his personal property
But what does Schroeder gain from his activities in prominent positions of Russian energy giants? The Hannoverische Allgemeine Zeitung seems to be very well informed. Even after his term (1998-2005) he continues to maintain many privileges to the detriment of taxpayers and despite his business activity in the Russian economy, he points out. First, he receives a pension that amounts to 35% of his salary as chancellor, around 7,062 euros per month. To this amount are added salaries for the period when he was Prime Minister of Lower Saxony and a member of the German Parliament.
As a former chancellor with an office in Berlin, the German taxpayer also covers staff costs. Last year alone, he received 407,000 euros from the public coffers for the salaries of his associates. There were no expenses for materials, as the chancellor’s services recently answered a question from the Central Committee of the Left. Of course, there has been mobility lately. His four associates asked him to leave his office because Schroeder continues to support Putin and retains his position as a Russian lobbyist. His office is not operational now. Despite his high pension, Schroeder joined the management company of the Nord Stream gas pipeline immediately after his election defeat, satisfying a request from President Putin. He had said at the time that such a proposal could not be rejected.
And the process continued. He became chairman of the joint-stock committee, in which the state-owned company Gazprom holds a majority. In 2006 he became head of the Board. of Gazprom subsidiary Nord Stream. As chairman of the supervisory board of the Russian state-owned company Rosneft, the former chancellor received compensation of 600,000 euros. As chairman of the Nord Stream AG shareholders’ committee, his salary is said to have been $ 250,000 a year. According to the Hannoversche Allgemeine Zeitung, his private property is estimated at 20m euros.
No other chancellor before him had such intensive relations with the economy. In fact, after politics, he made a second career as a lobbyist for Russian interests. Once hired by the Russian economy, his name was overshadowed by suspicions of corruption that he consistently denied. However, it is true that the Russian invasion began, Schroeder wrote on Linkedin: The war and the suffering of the people in Ukraine must end as soon as possible. It’s the responsibility of the Russian government, “said Roni Bar-On, a Member of the Knesset for Kadima.
Deutsche Welle
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