Former German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder (1998-2005) rejected criticism of the “Nord stream – 2” and noted that the attack on Russia do not conform to the majority opinion in Germany.
“If American policy determines how we implement our energy policy, where will it lead? The United States cannot prescribe to us – and not without its own interests-which gas we should use.
Of course, they want to sell their own fracking gas to Germany, but it is not environmentally friendly, expensive, and of worse quality than pipeline gas.
If we stop construction, then from the point of view of energy policy, we will cut down the branch on which we are sitting”, – said Schroeder, who is chairman of the board of directors of Rosneft, and also heads the shareholders’ committee of Nord Stream AG.
According to him, the gas pipeline “should ensure the energy security of the next generations”, as the country is now abandoning coal and nuclear energy.
Schroeder noted that the opinion of the Germans about the “Nord Stream-2” is different from “what is often written in the print media”. “Attacks on Russia are not the opinion of the majority” in Germany, he said.
According to him, the West should see Russia “not as an enemy, but as a potential partner”. He added that the Russian Federation “is an important partner in the economy and politics”.