A parliamentary committee in the German state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern is investigating the creation of the Nord Stream 2 undersea gas pipeline from Russia to Germany. Former Chancellor Gerhard Schröder, among others, who has always remained good friends with Vladimir Putin, must answer.
1What is being researched in Schwerin?
In the summer of 2020, US senators threatened to impose sanctions on companies and individuals involved in the construction of the Nord Stream 2. The senators, all Republican, warned about dependence on Russian gas.
To prevent Nord Stream 2 from not being completed due to such sanctions, a foundation was established in January 2021 by the government of the state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern. That foundation was called the ‘Climate and Environmental Foundation MV’ (Mecklenburg-Vorpommern). According to the foundation’s statutes, it had to support environmental projects in the northeastern state – and ensure the completion of Nord Stream 2. Nord Stream 2 – a subsidiary of Russia’s Gazprom – invested 20 million euros in the foundation, and the state 200,000 euros.
Construction of Nord Stream 2 continued; It is estimated that the foundation gave 160 to 190 million euros to the companies that had to complete Nord Stream 2. The pipeline was ready in February 2022. .
Now a parliamentary committee is investigating the creation of the ‘climate foundation’. Although Nord Stream 2 ends in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, and its construction provided employment, it is remarkable that the state government tried so hard to build the pipeline that it created a foundation with an unconvincing cover name.
The former CEO of Nord Stream 2, Matthias Warnig, said in his testimony that the idea came from the company itself – and possibly directly from Moscow. This raises questions about the influence of Russian state concerns on the German government.
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2What was former chancellor Gerhard Schröder interrogated about?
On Friday, former Chancellor Gerhard Schröder was questioned by the investigative committee by video link. Schröder (81) could not come to Schwerin himself due to his health. He had previously been absent twice for health reasons. .
This time he is there, albeit virtually. On Friday morning at ten o’clock, Schröder, in a white T-shirt with a jacket over it, appears on the screen, sipping an espresso. His lawyer sits next to him.
Schröder was chancellor from 1998 to 2005, during which time he became friends with Russian President Vladimir Putin. Putin and Schröder laid the foundation for the first gas pipeline between the two countries, Nord Stream 1. During the interrogation on Friday, Schröder outlined the background: “Germany wanted to get rid of nuclear energy, but we did not want to switch too much to German coal because of the negative environmental effects. We wanted as much gas as possible, which is a lot more environmentally friendly, for a good price.”
Moreover, Schröder said, Germany’s gas relationship with Russia has a long history under chancellors such as Willy Brandt, Helmut Schmidt and Helmut Kohl. “That cooperation has proven itself, and Putin and I have continued those relations. I still think that is absolutely the right decision.”
Other countries, such as Poland, where the pipeline passed off the coast, raised objections. Schröder is clear about this: “The counterarguments of the Polish government did not interest me.” Schröder dismissed the objections from the US and France with the argument that those countries had their own interests: the US wanted to sell LNG to Germany, and France wanted to sell nuclear energy.
Shortly after his term as Chancellor, Schröder became chairman of the supervisory board of Nord Stream 1. He then became chairman of the supervisory board of the Russian state oil company Rosneft and still chairs the board of directors of Nord Stream 2.
Chancellor Gerhard Schröder and Russian President Vladimir Putin greet each other in Berlin in 2005.
Photo Peer Grimm/ANP
3What does Schröder want to say about his role?
Schröder calls the climate foundation an “extremely sensible initiative”, which was “supposed to prevent American interference in German energy policy”. But Schröder says he no longer remembers details about the creation of the foundation.
During the interrogation, various meetings are mentioned that Schröder had with the then and still sitting Prime Minister of Mecklenburg Western Pomerania, his party colleague Manuela Schwesig. Schröder knows absolutely nothing about the content of the conversations. “Of course it was also about Nord Stream 2, and that it had to be phased out faster. But yes, it was about everything.” He often answers his questioners: “Do you remember what you talked on the phone about five years ago?”
When a Greens parliamentarian asks whether Schröder still received money from Nord Stream 2 after Russia’s attack on Ukraine in 2022, Schröder taunts the man. Schröder finds any connection between Nord Stream and the war in Ukraine absurd.
4How is the investigation proceeding?
The committee hopes to complete the investigation before the state elections next fall. Until then, a number of important witnesses will be heard, including Prime Minister Schwesig.
In the Bundestag in Berlin, the opposition parties Greens and Die Linke are calling for a national parliamentary investigation into the creation of Nord Stream and the question of how Germany could become so dependent on Russian gas. But so far the parties do not have a majority in favor of this. In addition to Schröder, this would also focus on Merkel, under whose chancellorship Nord Stream 2 was constructed.
Schröder on Friday: “Mrs. Merkel’s name is also on a piece of pipeline. To inaugurate it, we had to put our signature on a pipe. There was no difference in Merkel’s and mine’s course.”
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