> Hanover wants to strip Schröder of honorary citizenship
> The administrative committee of the city of Hanover is initiating proceedings to revoke the honorary citizenship of former German Chancellor Gerhard Schröder (SPD).
> This was decided by the body on Thursday, the city announced. “The administrative committee came to the conclusion that former German Chancellor Schröder no longer shares the values and goals of the state capital due to his ongoing business ties with Russian state-owned corporations,” the statement said. Schröder should be heard in accordance with the procedure and thus be given the opportunity to state his position. Schröder has been an honorary citizen of Hanover since 2006.
> Council will probably vote on March 31
Mayor Belit Onay (Greens) stressed that the council and the city would not make “any frivolous decisions” in matters of honorary citizenship. But, “I regret that Gerhard Schröder does not see himself in a position to draw the necessary personal and business consequences from Putin’s war of aggression.” He said he welcomes the fact that council policy has taken a position on former Chancellor Schröder’s honorary citizenship. It is expected that the deprivation will be voted on at the upcoming council meeting on March 31.
> Schröder is also under considerable pressure within his party. SPD leaders have called on him to resign from his posts at Russian state-owned companies. No one on the party’s executive committee approves of Schröder’s behavior “even remotely,” chairman Lars Klingbeil said Thursday. German Chancellor Olaf Scholz told ZDF television that the posts at state-owned and semi-state-owned Russian energy companies were not a private matter. Schröder continues to bear responsibility as a former chancellor and must justify himself to the public, he added. The SPD local association in Heidelberg has already applied for a party order procedure.
> There are also reactions in sports and science: Bundesliga soccer team Borussia Dortmund has withdrawn Schröder’s honorary membership, while Hannover 96 is even considering expelling him from the club. Meanwhile, the University of Göttingen is considering how to deal with Schröder’s honorary doctorate.
> Leadership positions at Nord Stream
Schröder is considered a longtime friend of Russian President Vladimir Putin. He is also head of the supervisory board at Russian state energy company Rosneft and holds leadership positions at the Nord Stream and Nord Stream 2 natural gas pipeline projects, which is why anti-corruption associations had recently called for him to be required to be entered in the lobby register. The commissioning of Nord Stream 2 has since been put on hold by the German government.
Good, the man is an out-of-touch geriatric radish.
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Translated with DeepL
> Hanover wants to strip Schröder of honorary citizenship
> The administrative committee of the city of Hanover is initiating proceedings to revoke the honorary citizenship of former German Chancellor Gerhard Schröder (SPD).
> This was decided by the body on Thursday, the city announced. “The administrative committee came to the conclusion that former German Chancellor Schröder no longer shares the values and goals of the state capital due to his ongoing business ties with Russian state-owned corporations,” the statement said. Schröder should be heard in accordance with the procedure and thus be given the opportunity to state his position. Schröder has been an honorary citizen of Hanover since 2006.
> Council will probably vote on March 31
Mayor Belit Onay (Greens) stressed that the council and the city would not make “any frivolous decisions” in matters of honorary citizenship. But, “I regret that Gerhard Schröder does not see himself in a position to draw the necessary personal and business consequences from Putin’s war of aggression.” He said he welcomes the fact that council policy has taken a position on former Chancellor Schröder’s honorary citizenship. It is expected that the deprivation will be voted on at the upcoming council meeting on March 31.
> Schröder is also under considerable pressure within his party. SPD leaders have called on him to resign from his posts at Russian state-owned companies. No one on the party’s executive committee approves of Schröder’s behavior “even remotely,” chairman Lars Klingbeil said Thursday. German Chancellor Olaf Scholz told ZDF television that the posts at state-owned and semi-state-owned Russian energy companies were not a private matter. Schröder continues to bear responsibility as a former chancellor and must justify himself to the public, he added. The SPD local association in Heidelberg has already applied for a party order procedure.
> There are also reactions in sports and science: Bundesliga soccer team Borussia Dortmund has withdrawn Schröder’s honorary membership, while Hannover 96 is even considering expelling him from the club. Meanwhile, the University of Göttingen is considering how to deal with Schröder’s honorary doctorate.
> Leadership positions at Nord Stream
Schröder is considered a longtime friend of Russian President Vladimir Putin. He is also head of the supervisory board at Russian state energy company Rosneft and holds leadership positions at the Nord Stream and Nord Stream 2 natural gas pipeline projects, which is why anti-corruption associations had recently called for him to be required to be entered in the lobby register. The commissioning of Nord Stream 2 has since been put on hold by the German government.
Good, the man is an out-of-touch geriatric radish.