Agency Report –
A former German top diplomat has described misjudging the intentions of Russian President Vladimir Putin as “one of the biggest mistakes in German foreign policy.”
Sigmar Gabriel, who first served as economy minister and then as foreign minister under former chancellor Angela Merkel between 2013 and 2018, was testifying on Friday before an inquiry committee looking into possible Russian influence on a German foundation linked to the Nord Stream gas pipelines.
While Gabriel denied that there had been close and regular cooperation between the federal government and the foundation in the state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, where the pipelines end, he admitted to having made mistakes when dealing with Russia.
Misjudging Putin and his intentions “is one of the biggest mistakes in German foreign policy that I have been involved in,” Gabriel said, describing this as “a bitter realization.”
The inquiry of the state parliament in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern has been tasked with clarifying whether Russia exerted influence on the establishment of the foundation which helped to complete the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline in 2021, despite the US threatening sanctions on the companies involved.
Long-running controversy
The Nord Stream pipelines were built to carry Russian natural gas through the Baltic Sea to Western Europe via Germany. They came under intense scrutiny even before Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
While operations of the first pipeline, called Nord Stream 1, began in 2011, plans for Nord Stream 2 were pursued even after Russia annexed the Black Sea peninsula of Crimea in 2014 in violation of international law.
Gabriel, who was also for years the leader of the Social Democrats, on Friday defended the then government’s decision to stick to the plans for Nord Stream 2 despite the Russian annexation of Crimea, arguing that halting construction might have jeopardized negotiations in the conflict.
He said the main aim had always been to secure German gas supplies, which had become a “private sector matter” as a result of the liberalization of the energy market.
Nord Stream 2 never went into operation due to Russia’s war against Ukraine, while Russia halted supplies via Nord Stream 1 following Western sanctions imposed over the war.
Both Nord Stream 1 and 2 have since been damaged by underwater explosions in September 2022, with a group of Ukrainians believed to be behind the sabotage.
Former German chancellor Olaf Scholz, who led a centre-left administration from 2021 to 2024, is set to testify before the inquiry on November 21, with the committee due to present results next year.
By Stefan Flomm
