Exchange of blows between ex-Federal Foreign Minister Sigmar Gabriel (62, SPD) and Ukraine Ambassador Andrij Melnyk (46): Gabriel sharply criticized Melnyk – accused him of spreading “conspiracy theories”. Melnyk launched a painful counterattack!
By Luisa Volkhausen
In a “mirrorIn a guest contribution, Gabriel first defended the work of Federal President Frank-Walter Steinmeier (66), rejecting criticism from Ukraine: In his previous position as Foreign Minister, together with ex-Chancellor Angela Merkel (67, CDU), Steinmeier had “more than everyone else in Europe” to support Ukraine, Gabriel wrote in his post.
AND, according to Gabriel tough: He does not want to accept “conspiracy theories about the politics of our country and its leaders” – meaning: statements by Ukraine Ambassador Melnyk.
︎ Gabriel specifically: A particularly dangerous “variant of conspiracy theories” is Melnyk’s claim that “during his active years as a politician, German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier had ‘made a spider’s web of contacts with Russia for decades’, which had an effect on the current government “. This comparison implies that Steinmeier helped organize a Russian interest group in Germany.
“It’s untruthful and malicious,” Gabriel said. A verbal attack that Melnyk didn’t let go.
Addressing Gabriel on Twitter, he countered: “Especially YOUR and your SPD cronies’ years of Putin-friendly policies were malicious, which brought about the barbaric war of annihilation against the Ukrainian state, Ukrainian nation, Ukrainian culture, and against Ukrainian women and children in the first place. “
And Melnyk continues: “The processing is still to come. Shame on you”!
︎ Gabriel himself was always a supporter of the controversial Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline, as he publicly said at the end of February. He considered the project necessary and “in Germany’s interest,” he explained in 2015. In 2017, he praised Russia as a “extremely loyal supplier” of gas – and spoke out against a change in the energy-internal market package by the EU, which also includes the would affect the Russian pipeline.
An attitude that Melnyk blames him for!
On Sunday morning, the Ukraine ambassador commented on Gabriel’s tweet on his guest post, accusing him of concealing his “personal political responsibility for Putin’s Nord Stream 2 project, which you launched as Vice Chancellor in 2015”.
FACT IS: Gabriel’s current “Spiegel” guest contribution is more than 1600 words long – the term “Nord Stream 2” is not mentioned once!
