Germany Closes Former Chancellor Schroder's Office... "Cannot Honor Former Chancellor Lobbying for Putin"

[Image source=AP Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Hyunwoo Lee] The German government announced that it will close the office of former Chancellor Gerhard Schr?der, which had been supported by public funds. Despite Russia's invasion of Ukraine, former Chancellor Schr?der continued his pro-Russian stance, facing domestic and international criticism.

According to Bloomberg on the 18th (local time), the three parties of the German coalition government?the Social Democratic Party, the Green Party, and the Free Democratic Party?agreed to the procedure to close former Chancellor Schr?der’s office located in the German Federal Parliament. The office had been funded by the government as a courtesy to a former head of state.

Christian Lindner, Germany’s Finance Minister, strongly criticized in a broadcast interview, saying, "It is unimaginable that a former chancellor who publicly lobbies for Vladimir Putin still receives taxpayer money as a courtesy." The office reportedly received about 400,000 euros (approximately 530 million KRW) annually in public funds, along with staff support.

Previously, former Chancellor Schr?der had served as chairman of the Russian oil company Rosneft since 2017, and in February, just before the Russian military invaded Ukraine, he was also appointed as a director of the Russian state-owned gas company Gazprom. Even after the outbreak of the war, he continued his pro-Russian activities, drawing public criticism. Following the Ukraine crisis, four employees working in Schr?der’s office requested reassignment to other duties after the start of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

According to the German government’s plan to close the office, various files and materials within the office will be transferred to the National Archives. Schr?der’s side has not yet issued an immediate response.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.