After sanctions against Putin friend: Former Chancellor Schröder takes action against the Bundestag - "Public hunt"
Created: 06/16/2022, 05:05
By: Patrick Mayer
Considered to be good friends: ex-Chancellor Gerhard Schröder (left) and Russian President Vladimir Putin, here in October 2005. At that time, the Lower Saxon was still the German head of government.
© IMAGO / ITAR-TASS
Gerhard Schröder does not want to accept the cancellation of his former chancellor privileges and seeks talks with the Bundestag.
He had been sanctioned for his relationship with Moscow ruler Vladimir Putin.
Munich/Hanover/Berlin – He is considered a close friend of Moscow ruler Vladimir Putin, and he was sanctioned for the Russia-Ukraine war because of these ties to the Kremlin.
We are talking about the former Chancellor Gerhard Schröder (SPD, 78), who was Germany's head of government between 1998 and 2005.
Gerhard Schröder: Putin friend resists cancellation of former chancellor's privileges
Schröder now does not want to accept the decision by the Bundestag budget committee to abolish his former chancellor privileges unchecked and, according to media reports, is seeking talks with the committee.
The committee's decision, which can be seen in the media, was "evidently illegal and unconstitutional," quoted the news portal
The Pioneer
on Wednesday evening from a letter from Schröder's lawyer to the chairman of the budget committee in parliament, Helge Braun (CDU).
On behalf of his client, the lawyer therefore requests the committee to send him an “auditable and therefore appealable decision”.
Schröder learned "through the media" that his office was to be "put on hold" and that the positions assigned to the office were to be wound down.
The lawyer and Braun's office did not initially respond to inquiries from the
German Press Agency (dpa)
on Wednesday evening (June 15).
In the video: Compact - The most important news about the Russia-Ukraine war
The
Bild newspaper
also quoted from the letter.
In their report, citing this, it says that a judicial clarification is not at the forefront "despite the now no longer acceptable public hounding".
One would be "happy about the chance to find a mutually acceptable regulation 'on an equal footing' in the course of the discussion".
According to the
Süddeutsche Zeitung (SZ)
, the letter was also available.
Gerhard Schröder: Germany's ex-Chancellor is considered a close friend of Vladimir Putin
Schröder, a long-time friend of Russian President Vladimir Putin, has repeatedly come under pressure because of his connections to Russia.
After the Russian attack on Ukraine, this increased further.
Several requests for expulsion from the party were made to the Social Democrats.
In mid-May, the budget committee voted to close the former chancellor's office.
Last year, more than 400,000 euros flowed from the state treasury for personnel expenses in Schröder's office.
According to the committee decision, the former chancellor is still entitled to a pension and personal protection.
(dpa/pm)