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German chancellor claims independence from Russian gas

Germany had freed itself from dependence on Russian gas but was working to bring energy prices down, by securing new gas delivery contracts from other countries, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said, speaking to the German parliament on Thursday.

Russian President Vladimir Putin was using energy and hunger as weapons but has failed to break the West’s unity and will not achieve his war aims through scorched earth tactics, Mr Scholz added.

Better late than never

Until the launch of the Russian invasion, Germany had strengthened ties with Moscow, increasing its dependence on Russian gas through the Nord Stream pipelines.

Earlier, many European Union states as well as the US and Ukraine tried to lobby against the Nord Stream pipelines warning Germany that making the region more dependent on Russian gas would put everybody at risk.

But Germany would not forfeit their push to strengthen ties with Russia defending the project and boasting about its useful nature.

Now after Russia showed its true face Berlin changed its political stance, championing Ukraine’s independence and hedging energy sources.

A change for the better

After the first Russian offensive broke out and a wave of European countries started sending military aid to Ukraine, Germany also pledged to send military assistance to Ukraine, however, the first transport of heavy weaponry from Berlin was sent to Ukraine as late as June 2022.

Since then, Germany closed the gap and sent large amounts of equipment to Ukraine.

“We will not let Moscow’s latest escalation go unanswered… Scorched earth tactics will not help Russia win the war. They will only strengthen the unity and resolve of Ukraine and its partners,” Mr Scholz told the German parliament on Thursday.

“All the lies and propaganda, the talk of ‘special operations’ and swift victories – all that was just a facade, like a Potemkin village,” he stressed.

The chancellor was speaking as the leaders of the 27 European Union countries prepared to meet for the second time in a fortnight to try to bring down energy prices.

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