Merkel reflects on Putin's ambitions and Nord Stream 2 decision
Angela Merkel in an interview published in the Italian newspaper "Corriere della Sera" said she knew Vladimir Putin's intentions and she knew that he was an enemy of Europe. When asked why in 2015, a year after the Russian annexation of Crimea, she did not block the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline project, she replied: "I did not stop Nord Stream to guarantee cheap gas for the German economy."
- I knew President Putin's intentions very well. He has always expressed them both publicly and in private conversations. I knew many of his aims and I knew that we were not dealing with a friend of Europe. My response was not to no longer have any relationship with Putin, but rather to try to prevent the invasion of Ukraine through talks, sometimes very polemical - recalled Merkel.
She emphasized: "It worked for a while. With the beginning of the Russian war against Ukraine, the situation has fundamentally changed."
Our views were diametrically opposed. Putin tried to make Russia a great power again. But he failed to do it on an economic level, through prosperity for all. Instead, he tried the methods he had learned in the secret service, the KGB, through military force and Russian nationalism - said the former German chancellor.
- Thus, the many hopes we had in 1990 that Russia would gradually take the path of democratisation were not justified - acknowledged the interviewee of "Corriere della Sera."
Merkel was asked why in 2015, a year after the Russian annexation of Crimea, she did not block the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline project, and she replied:
- I wanted to ensure that the German economy could take advantage of the opportunity to have cheap gas. And let's see today what are the consequences for Germany of high energy costs.
In addition, for political reasons, I wanted to maintain economic relations with Russia so that this country would also have prosperity - noted the head of the German government from 2005-21.
Merkel: Unlike Trump, I believe in compromise
About the President-elect of the United States, Donald Trump, she said that for him there was never a win-win situation. She referred to a method where each participant in the negotiations can feel like a winner.
- For Donald Trump, there are never situations where both partners in an agreement get advantages. For him, either one or the other wins. This is an idea I do not share. I think we've done a lot of deals around the world that are mutually beneficial. I believe in the power of compromise, unlike Trump - declared Merkel.
She expressed the opinion that the most important thing is "to cooperate with Trump, as partners and representatives of a country free from fear and self-confident, defending its own interests, in my case German and European, as clearly as he defends his owns."
Merkel added: "Donald Trump was obsessed with what he thought were too many German cars in New York. He always said that if he became president, he would impose tariffs so high that they would disappear from the streets of Manhattan. In his eyes, I embodied Germany."
