Alleged sadness over gas deals
Putin is faking the German ambassador
December 4th, 2023, 9:55 p.m
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At the ceremony to swear in new ambassadors, which also includes FDP politician Alexander Graf Lambsdorff, Russian President Putin once again presents his own view of things. He mourns old gas deals and sees Berlin as being to blame for a lot of things but with yourself.
Russian President Vladimir Putin has expressed his (alleged) regret to the new German ambassador in Moscow, Alexander Graf Lambsdorff, about “Germany’s turning away from Russian gas,” as the Kremlin chief describes it. “For more than half a century, with Germany we were able to develop a pragmatic approach to business that was comfortable for both our countries and the entire European continent,” Putin said at a ceremony to swear in newly appointed foreign ambassadors in Moscow.
“Our country has continuously supplied Germany with ecologically clean gas,” said the Russian head of state. This partnership was “literally blown up” by the Nord Stream pipeline explosion, he added. The gas pipeline through the Baltic Sea was damaged by a series of yet unexplained explosions at the end of September 2022. In addition to Ukraine being the culprit, Russia is also suspected.
However, the Kremlin had already stopped the gas flow through Nord Stream 1 before the explosions. Moscow initially cited a missing gas turbine following maintenance work in Canada as the reason for cutting back on deliveries through the Nord Stream 1 pipeline. Then gas deliveries were stopped altogether for maintenance work and were not resumed due to a suspected oil leak at the Portovaya compressor station.
The EU accused Gazprom of shutting down the pipeline under false pretenses. Russia prefers to burn gas rather than fulfill contracts. By stopping deliveries, Russia primarily wanted to increase pressure to ease the sanctions imposed by the West in the wake of Russia’s war against Ukraine.
Germany is said to be to blame for the ice age
In his speech in the Kremlin, which was broadcast on state television, Putin blamed the federal government for a new ice age that was not beneficial for Germany, Russia or the entire European continent. Of course, the Russian president did not see that the trigger for this ice age and a significantly worsened situation in Europe was the war of aggression against Ukraine with tens of thousands of deaths. Instead, the 71-year-old complained that the relationship between Berlin and Moscow had been frozen “not on our initiative.”
In addition to Lambsdorff, around two dozen new ambassadors from European countries were sworn in, including Sweden, Great Britain, Slovenia and Greece. Moscow’s relations with many of these Western states have cooled significantly since the Russian offensive in Ukraine and due to the sanctions imposed against Russia.
Putin is reportedly hoping for better relations
“The times are not easy,” emphasized the Kremlin chief. Addressing the new British ambassador, Putin said he hoped the situation would change “for the better in the interests of our countries and nations.” London is considered one of Ukraine’s most important supporters. Western states are demanding that Putin end the war and completely withdraw Russian troops from Ukrainian territory, which the Kremlin rejects.
The Kremlin chief complained to the new ambassador from Sweden about the “complete lack of communication” between Moscow and Stockholm and the restrictions on economic cooperation. He further expressed concern that Sweden had abandoned its “200-year policy of non-participation in military alliances.” The Scandinavian country hopes to join NATO soon.