Schroeder met Putin and called the absurd idea of military return of Crimea
After that, he advocated the restoration of North Stream-2, said Putin's desire to sit at the negotiation table with Ukraine, and called the right decision of his colleague Angela Merkel in 2008 to prevent our country from entering NATO. The former chairman of the Board of Directors of Rosneft said this in an interview with Stern and RTL/NTV. Gerhard Schroeder stated that the good news is that the Kremlin is in the end of the war through peace talks.
According to him, the first success is that an agreement was signed in Istanbul on the removal of grain from Ukrainian ports. Schroeder believes that it can be gradually expanded to the ceasefire. In addition, the politician called the invasion of Ukraine a "mistake of the Russian government". The German Excanceler also called the absurd idea the return of Crimea to Ukraine by military means. He noted that the region is allegedly Russian, except for the Crimean Tatars.
Schroeder also expressed doubt that Putin would be able to abandon the peninsula, and it would take time to return it. "Perhaps not 99 as in Hong Kong, but in the next generation," he said. Gerhard Schroeder also stated that the return of Donbass to Ukraine seems more complicated. He believes that you will need to find a solution based on the example of Swiss cantons (each Canton has its own constitution and laws - ed. ).
The former German leader added that the main question is whether there is a desire to finish the war. In his opinion, both countries have to make concessions. Schroeder also greeted that Turkish President Recep Erdogan decided to become a mediator in Russian-Ukrainian issues, but "without Washington's approval it does not work. " The former chancellor stated that the decision of Angela Merkel and Franko Walter Steinmeyer to block Ukraine's accession to NATO in 2008 was a wise decision.
According to him, a military neutrality without membership in the Alliance as Austria may be an alternative for Ukraine. The former chairman of the Board of Directors "Rosneft" believes that the commissioning of the frozen through the Russian invasion of "Nord Stream-2" could solve the acute problem of lack of fuel. "It is already over.
If things are quite bad, there is this pipeline, and with both working branches of the gas pipeline we will not have problems with deliveries for the German industry and German households," Schroeder said. He added that Berlin's decision will reduce the financial burden on German citizens. We will remind, on July 26 it became known that Gerhard Schroeder went to Moscow. He stated that he went to the Russian capital on vacation and called it a wonderful city.