In Germany, Social Democrats call for Schröder to be expelled from party after his trip to Putin for birthday
In the Social Democratic Party of Germany, there are renewed calls to expel former German Chancellor Gerhard Schröder from the party following his trip to celebrate the birthday of Russian leader Vladimir Putin.
This is reported by n-tv.
In particular, the co-chairs of the SPD regional organizations in Baden-Württemberg and Bavaria, Robin Mesarosch and Sebastian Roloff, spoke out in favor of expelling Schröder.
"A former chancellor who goes to the birthdays of war criminals makes himself unacceptable not only to the SPD. Schröder is a total disgrace for the entire country," Mesarosch stated.
At the same time, he noted that the legal barriers for expulsion from the party "remain high."
Bavarian SPD co-chair Sebastian Roloff also spoke in favor of a new attempt to expel Schröder, although he called its prospects uncertain. "If there is a chance, it should be tried," Roloff said.
According to him, Schröder's behavior is "completely unacceptable."
"Showing respect to a war criminal who has been terrorizing not only Ukraine for years, but also ordering hybrid attacks against Germany, is impossible to justify," he emphasized.
Criticism of Schröder was also expressed by former SPD Labor Minister Hubertus Heil. "Schröder's and Putin's warm embrace in Moscow deeply outrages and disturbs me," Heil commented.
Franziska Brantner, co-chair of Alliance 90/The Greens, also called for Schröder's expulsion. She recalled that she had made similar statements in 2022.
Context
On October 7, on his 74th birthday, Putin received Schröder at his home. According to the Kremlin, the Russian president learned from the media that the former chancellor was in Moscow "on business" and invited "his longtime friend." The Kremlin also published a photo of their meeting.
Earlier it became known that Schröder became a member of the supervisory board of Hyperglobus LLC - the former Russian subsidiary of the German holding Globus Holding GmbH & Co, which owns the Globus hypermarket chain in the Russian Federation.
Schröder headed the German government in 1998-2005. He has long maintained friendly relations with Putin and has worked with Russian energy companies for many years. Due to these ties, the former chancellor has repeatedly faced criticism, particularly after the start of the full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine.
After completing his political career, Schröder continued cooperation with the Russian energy sector. In particular, he headed the board of directors of Nord Stream 2 AG, a subsidiary of Gazprom that was engaged in the construction of the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline. It was completed at the end of 2021, but due to the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the pipeline never started operating.
In May, Putin himself suggested considering Schröder as a possible mediator between Russia and Ukraine. However, the German government met this idea with considerable skepticism.
