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Germany should discuss the facilitation of sanctions against Moscow, a senior member of Friedrich’s right -wing Merz Christian Democrats has said, arguing that punitive measures were damaging Europe even more than Vladimir Putin.
Michael Kretschmer, the Prime Minister of the CDU in the state of East German Saxony, became the latest in a series of politicians by Europe’s largest nation to navigate the idea of resuming links with Russia – an attitude that prompted harsh criticism from Ukraine supporters.
Kretschmer said the insistence by leaders in Germany and Europe to maintain punitive measures against Moscow was “completely old and does not fit what Americans are doing now”.
He told the German press agency DPA: “When you realize that you are weakening more than your opponent, then you have to think if all this is right.”
Cretschmer, whose state of saxonia is a fortress of support for far -right and left -wing parties accused of sheltering sympathy for Putin, added: “A constant discussion of which of these sanctions may be more harmful to us than Russia should be possible,” he said. “But that is not happening.”
Kretschmer, who is also a long opponent of weapons deliveries in Ukraine, is the latest in a range of figures from both Merz’s right-wing CDU and left-wing Social Deputy Social Democrats who have released in recent weeks with calls to resume economic or energy links with Russia.
This has created a problem for Merz – which is everything, but sure he is another German Chancellor – as well as his potential coalition partners at the SPD at a time when he is trying to throw himself as a strong partner for Ukraine and Europe.
Germany’s Green Party, which is strongly pro-speaking, called on Sunday for Merz to grip “Putin’s friends” in his party.
Britta Haßelmann’s parliamentary co-leader said she was enraged by Kretschmer’s remarks and urged CDU leaders to take control of those who seek to revive the “most important link of Germany”-a reference to long links between some parts of German business, finance and politics with Russia.
The relationship was embodied by former SPD Chancellor Gerhard Schröder, a close friend of Putin who was chairman of the Russian state-owned Russian oil company Board until he eventually withdrew in May 2022 after full-scale Putin of Ukraine. But some figures in the CDU have long been advocates of economic ties with Russia and skeptical of military support for KyIw.
“Friedrich Merz and CDU leadership can no longer hold the issue and finally have to take a clear stance on the revival of the Moscow League,” Haßelmann said. “Time to silence the matter is over.”
In recent weeks, some politicians from the two largest parties in the center of Germany have publicly supported the idea of restoring economic ties with Moscow.
CDU MP Thomas Bareiß responded to reports-including the Financial Times-for the possible revival of the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline writing a post by LinkedIn praising “how much business mind is our American friends”.
He added: “When peace is restored and weapons fall silent between #russia and #ukraine (and hopefully this will happen soon), relationships will normalize, embargoes will be removed sooner or later and, of course, #gas can flow again, maybe this time in the US control.”
Jan Heinisch, a CDU politician from the state of North Rhine-Westphalia who is part of the team leading the coalition of energy talks, told Politico: “If a fair and secure peace is one day, then we should be allowed to talk again about the purchase of Russian gas.”
SPD high profile members have also addressed the idea, including Dietmar Woidke, the Prime Minister of the East German state of Brandenburg. He has called for a normalization of Germany’s trade relations with Russia after a peace agreement, including in raw materials, saying: “I really believe that economic relations can also contribute to the improvement of relations between Europe and Russia in general.”
