Putin’s 100 billion dollar plan: Russia planned to bind Germany and Europe to itself for decades. Former Chancellor Schröder involved the whole government of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania to achieve this. Politically sensitive business followed. (German, summary in comments)
by cito
4 comments
Summary:
– **Russian gas plan**: Russia planned to secure its gas exports to Europe for decades by producing and delivering hydrogen via Nord Stream 2. It sought partners in Germany, especially in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, where the pipeline landed.
– **SPD and Schröder**: Former chancellor and gas lobbyist Gerhard Schröder played a key role in promoting the Russian gas plan and involving his SPD party friends, such as state premier Manuela Schwesig and energy minister Christian Pegel. They cooperated with Russian state companies and officials on various projects and initiatives.
– **Climate foundation**: A “climate foundation” funded by Nord Stream 2 was set up in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern to bypass US sanctions and support the pipeline construction. It also aimed to facilitate the transition to hydrogen as a future energy source.
– **Interests and conflicts**: Pegel’s involvement in the Russian gas plan raised questions about his personal and professional interests, as his law firm received a contract from a company that was part of Schröder’s network and sought business with Gazprom and Nord Stream 2. Pegel also bypassed his own department and communicated directly with Schröder and the company.
A robber pulled a gun on the bank clerk and manager saying, “Give me all the money! I need it to set myself up in a trade or profession. You know, initial investment is needed to cover the overheads until my cash flow is established.” The bank manager said to the clerk, “You’d better do what he says, I think he means business.”
It’s like Germany didn’t look at their own history.
No, not that bit…
The Weimar republic pursued a normalisation of relations with the USSR based on deep trade ties and the willingness of the USSR to help them get round certain aspects of Versailles.
Big German industrial companies got large contracts to provide the USSR with quick industrialisation of certain parts of the economy such as Krups helping to set up a test farm that provided a model for Stalins [collectivisation](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Collectivization_in_the_Soviet_Union) of the societ agricultural industry (and the mass deportation of peasants to siberia).
The Soviets also allowed the germans to set up a [tank school](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kama_tank_school) in defiance of Versaille where Krups (again), Mercedes and Rheinmetall got to develop their tank skills along with what would prove to be several high ranking members of the Wehrmacht in ww2.
Then there was the [air base](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lipetsk_fighter-pilot_school) also in defiance of Versailles where Germany trained both its own and the Red Army’s fighter pilots and Junkers got to experiment just in time for it all to be put to the test in the Spanish Civil War.
And finally there was [Tomka](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tomka_gas_test_site) which was very much forbidden by Versailles as it was a chemical weapons facility that not only laid the foundations for the German chemical wepons programme but after the Nazis came to power it became the basis of the Soviet one too.
Bad things happen when Germany decides that what Russia really needs is lots of hig level german industrial help…
No shit, really? Bind them? Like the US and China are doing? Insane!!