Gerhard Schroeder: Crimea's reunification with Russia is a response to NATO enlargement

If Ukraine joined NATO, the main base of the Black Sea fleet in Sevastopol would be on the territory of the Alliance. Therefore, the reunification of Crimea with Russia is a response to NATO's eastward expansion.

This opinion was expressed in an interview with the German magazine Spiegel by former German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder.

He believes that Russia understood the full danger of Ukraine's joining the North Atlantic Alliance. And the likelihood of such a development of events was quite high.

According to Schroeder, the accession of Eastern European countries to NATO was a logical and natural process. But then, under pressure from the United States, they decided to go beyond this, starting a discussion about joining the Alliance of Ukraine and Georgia. The ex-chancellor notes that this was part of the "strategy of encircling Russia", which at that time tried to maintain open and friendly relations with both Europe and NATO.

And although Schroeder considers the entry of Crimea into the Russian Federation to be contrary to international law, this does not contradict his conviction that Russia had good reasons for such a step.

The former German chancellor does not understand what the anti-Russian sanctions are for, after all, none of the Russian presidents will give Crimea to Ukraine under any circumstances.

Now Gerhard Schroeder is the chairman of the board of directors of Rosneft and heads the shareholders committee of Nord Stream AG.

Comments

[svp67]

This opinion was expressed in an interview with the German magazine Spiegel by former German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder.

Than once again confirmed for the "dermocrats" that he is "a bought agent of Putin" ... Now they will start him, they WILL NOT CONTINUE "mix with shit"

[Orange bigg]

Why? He says what everyone has known for a long time.

Before Crimea became part of Russia, the United States planned to open its diplomatic mission on the peninsula, former Acting Foreign Minister of Ukraine Volodymyr Khandogiy told UkrLife. He specified that this topic was discussed during the presidency of Viktor Yushchenko.

The reason for the start of such negotiations was NATO's refusal in 2008 to provide Kiev with an action plan for membership in the alliance. According to Khandogiy, after that he met with the then US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and signed a charter on strategic cooperation between Washington and Kiev.

This document included, in particular, a clause stating that an "honorary or some kind of US diplomatic presence should be created in Simferopol," Khandogiy said, adding that the parties discussed this issue for a long time.

His colleague, ex-Ukrainian Foreign Minister Volodymyr Ohryzko, said that the discussion of this issue began even before Khandogia took office in 2009, and he personally spoke about this with ex-US Ambassador to Ukraine William Taylor.

Before the peninsula became part of Russia, not only the United States, but NATO as a whole, had views on it. As an ex-CIA officer, founder of the organization of American intelligence veterans, Raymond Berkeley McGovern, told IA Regnum in June 2016, if Crimea had not joined Russia, NATO military bases would have appeared there. According to him, this story began not even in this and not in the last decade, but since the fall of the Berlin Wall.

https://m.gazeta.ru/army/2019/11/29/12838526.shtml

[Machito]

The unification of the two Germany was contrary to international laws. Where is the referendum in the FRG and the GDR? The parliaments of Crimea and the Russian Federation have completed all legal procedures for the unification of the country.
Everything is legal. The mosquito will not undermine the nose.

[Simon schempp]

that he is a "bought agent of Putin"

Well, of course never bought. After all, he became the chairman of the board of directors of Rosneft because he is a professional energy specialist. Yeah.

[svp67]

Quote: Simon Schempp

Well, of course never bought. After all, he became the chairman of the board of directors of Rosneft because he is a professional energy specialist. Yeah.

So what? Well, remember then such names of politicians who have gone into business as Thatcher, Major, Rumsfeld, Bush Sr. ... But Blair, it turns out that Kazakhstan bought him?

[dauria]

After all, he became the chairman of the board of directors of Rosneft, because he is a professional specialist

In vain you are ironic. In this matter, personal acquaintances and connections are no less important than knowledge of petrochemistry.
If he went to school (bathhouse, institute, for women) together with potential buyers and customers, he should be hired without hesitation.

[vlad106]

Quote: Simon Schempp

never bought. After all, he became the chairman of the board of directors of Rosneft, because he is a professional energy specialist. Yeah.

Who led the USSR to collapse?
Most of them were corrupt there, otherwise they would not have allowed the destruction of the country ...
Misha-envelope with a paradise in front of everyone.
But who dragged the hunchback to the very top? The most important with a "cold mind and clean hands" - Antroppof, who, in addition to everything, had a real surname

[sedoj]

Quote: Simon Schempp

Well, of course never bought. After all, he became the chairman of the board of directors of Rosneft because he is a professional energy specialist. Yeah.

Do you want to say that Deripaska, Abramovich, Khodorkovsky, etc. were all specialists in their field?

[businessv]

Quote: Simon Schempp

he became the chairman of the board of directors of Rosneft because he is a professional energy specialist. Yeah.

He is a foreign member of the Russian Academy of Sciences and knows well the topic of renewable energy resources, and most importantly, he has vast experience in management, which is much more important than being a specialist in the field of energy.

[Vladimir Mashkov]

Gerhard, of course, is right about the counter-NATO step. The rest of the rhetoric is Western whim!

[businessv]

Quote: svp67

Now it will start, DO NOT CONTINUE "mix with shit"

It is unlikely that they will do this, especially after Merkel's departure. The stripes have tired not only Germany, but the whole of Europe with their presence in every issue, so the struggle for the place of the Chancellor of the Federal Republic of Germany will be serious and with an unpredictable result.

[Thrifty]

Will leave the post of the head of Rosneft, in Europe it will sing something completely different!

[Piramidon]

Quote: svp67

Now it will start, DO NOT CONTINUE "mix with shit"

To hedge against this, he made a reservation:

Schroeder considers the entry of Crimea into the Russian Federation to be contrary to international law

[tihonmarine]

Quote: svp67

Now it will start, DO NOT CONTINUE "mix with shit"

But he insured himself a little from this, Schroeder considers the entry of Crimea into the Russian Federation to be contrary to international lawso as not to be mixed with feces.

[Crowe]

This is the restoration of historical justice first of all.
Russians in Crimea were constantly told: "And whoever doesn't like it, take them to Russia." And, finally, the Russians said: "Okay, we persuaded, we are going to Russia."

[Lipchanin]

Quote: Crowe

This is the restoration of historical justice first of all.

Returned their

[Sergey Nikiforov]

Pyrrhic victory

[Svarog]

Quote: Crowe

"And whoever doesn't like it, take them to Russia." And, finally, the Russians said: "Okay, we persuaded, we are going to Russia."

Donbas also wanted to go to Russia .. and Odessa does not mind .. and if you dig deeper, then 40 percent of Ukrainians would like to go to Russia .. well, with a certain well-built policy, all 80% would agree to join Russia.
Well, Schroeder can afford to speak as it is, because he financially depends on the Russian Federation, and not on the United States.

[Lipchanin]

The former German chancellor does not understand what the anti-Russian sanctions are for, after all, none of the Russian presidents will give Crimea to Ukraine under any circumstances.

So this is just a prodlog for the introduction of sanctions

[tralflot1832]

In Germany, the witch-hunt is somehow not encouraged, you can not only criticize the government's policy, and so Schroeder did not say anything seditious.

[Svetlana]

Give a link to that interview. You are welcome..
Here is a link to his words the day before yesterday, where he said that Russia had crossed all the boundaries of what is permissible and the annexation of Crimea is an example of this. Yes, he considers the sanctions inadmissible, but no more.
The fact that he received Gazprom money did not make him loyal to Russia.

https://www.t-online.de/nachrichten/ausland/id_89292304/altkanzler-gerhard-schroeder-distanziert-sich-erstmals-von-wladimir-putin.html#utm_source=websuche&utm_medium=t-online-ergebnisse&utm_campaign=link1

[Avior]

And the article was modestly written about it.

Schroeder considers the entry of Crimea into the Russian Federation to be contrary to international law

But in general ...
An article from the category of how to turn grudge into power, otherwise it turns out to be embarrassing - a man who shovels Russian money, calls the annexation of Crimea illegal, accuses Russia of poisoning Navalny and Skripals and hacker attacks, and glorifies the United States, which, in his opinion, made Germany a democratic country ...

[Simargl]

Quote: Svetlana

Here is a link to his words the day before yesterday, where he said that Russia has crossed all the boundaries of what is permissible and the annexation of Crimea is an example of this.

You definitely read the article carefully?

And although Schroeder considers the entry of Crimea into the Russian Federation to be contrary to international law, this does not contradict his conviction that Russia had good reasons for such a step.

[Svetlana]

Yes, I read it.
"Has crossed the boundaries of acceptable" (original) not equal "contrary to international law (here)".

[Simargl]

Quote: Svetlana

not equal

Those. is "international law" a non-binding set of rules?
In my opinion, the words "contrary to international law" can be considered more rigid than the ephemeral "boundaries of what is permissible."

[Svetlana]

I'm talking about his direct words that were uttered by him, you are about the interpretation of words by the translator.

[Avior]

Die Annexion der Krim war ein klarer Bruch des Völkerrechts
The annexation of Crimea was a clear violation of international law

Borders that cannot be crossed - this is he about something else, in this place he talks about hacker attacks, in particular, on the Bundestag

[Reserve buildbat]

Former Chancellor of Germany ... ... Gerhard Schroeder is the chairman of the board of directors of Rosneft and heads the shareholder committee of Nord Stream AG.
Such a Russian "Rosneft" already takes evil.

[alekseykabanets]

Quote: Stroibat stock

Such a Russian "Rosneft" already takes evil.

Is she the only one "Russian"?

[for]

And what post they prepared, Merkel will replace Muler.

[APASUS]

Gerhard Schroeder is already considered a traitor in the West, due to the fact that he works for Russian companies, so his words do not mean anything. And as always, all smart things in the West say politicians with the prefix ex

[Ros 56]

What a fashion to tie everything up. The return of Crimea is a normal political process, which was supported by all true patriots of Russia, even if there was no base there. And given the base of the Black Sea Fleet, this process just became more significant.
And I believe that we must return all the lands that somehow belonged to the Russian Empire or the USSR and which, for political or economic reasons, were once annexed to our former Soviet republics.

[GRIGORIY76]

Obviously, being at Sechin's salary, you can not say that.

[taiga2018]

Yes, this is not an answer, but any normal president of Russia was obliged to return Crimea, but the president who wants to give Crimea back, or just hints about it, is a corpse, and not only a political one ... And the answer to NATO expansion is " Sarmat "," Zircon "," Poseidon "," Petrel ", etc.

[Polite Moose]

Quote: taiga2018

but the president who wants to give Crimea back, or just hints about it, a corpse, and not only a political

Exactly. And not just a corpse, but a corpse without external gender characteristics, which he will lose during his lifetime.

[prior]

American Crimea is much worse than if Cuba belonged to Russia.
And everyone in the West understands this, but they are pretending to be a democratic "virgin".

[Avior]

An interesting situation is developing
Head of the largest Russian state-owned companies

Gerhard Schroeder is Chairman of the Board of Directors of Rosneft and chairs the Shareholders' Committee of Nord Stream AG.

In plain text, in violation of the Russian Constitution and laws, he declares that Crimea is annexed to Russia illegally.

"The annexation of Crimea was a clear violation of international law"

And confirms this in his book

in his forthcoming book Last Chance, that Putin "crossed a line that should not have been crossed." For his part, Schroeder clarified that this phrase did not refer to Putin, but to Russia.

Moreover, in this interview, he accuses Russia of poisoning Skripal and Navalny,
Hacker attacks to the west from Russia, and claims that democracy in Germany could be established only thanks to the United States, no more, no less.
And all this for not weak Russian money.
Is this a normal situation?

[Polite Moose]

Quote: Avior

Is this a normal situation?

It is vitally important for the Germans to push through the completion of the SP-2. And so that the "big white father" does not suspect them of a change in orientation and does not harshly scatter all the raspberries, they (the Germans), within their assigned role at all levels, will say any anti-Russian slogans.

[Avior]

Nobody pulled this interview from Schroeder, like his book, not a beggar, however, the last Armorácia rusticána does not eat up without salt.
He is no longer a politician.
Nobody bothered him to simply keep silent.

[askort154]

Former Chancellor of Germany, Gerhard Schroeder during his reign,
sharply went to rapprochement with Russia, which frightened the United States. German technology, plus Russian resources, is a blow to them "in the gut", both in the economy and in the military sphere. Therefore, they did not allow Schroeder for a second term, replacing him with Merkel, who was on a big hook with the US intelligence services. During the reign of Schroeder, he developed strong, truly friendly relations with Putin, which they do not hide to this day. That is why Putin entrusted Rosneft and Nord Stream to him.
German punctuality is necessary to reduce corruption, as well as to use his authority and remaining opportunities in the power circles of Germany and the EU.

[rotmistr60]

Schroeder considers the entry of Crimea into the Russian Federation to be contrary to international law

With all due respect to Schroeder, but what kind of international law are we talking about when the United States and Europe systematically spit on this right, considering their interests above him. In addition, a legal referendum was held in Crimea, and the people spoke in favor of joining Russia. Did this violate international law? Or remind Kosovo and how the decision was made there and under pressure from whom?

[Baloo]

reunification of Crimea with Russia is a response to NATO expansion to the East.

Restoration of historical justice. This is the will of the peoples of Crimea and this is the main thing. What does NATO have to do with it?

[Gennady Fomkin]

Fritz Schröder, his father, died in 1944 in Romania and may well have been among the opposition in the Crimea.

[Gennady Fomkin]

Former German Chancellor remembered NATO expansion before Crimea annexation

Former German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder recalled NATO expansion before Crimea's annexation to Russia. He told about this in an interview with Spiegel. He recalled the desire of Ukraine and Georgia to join the North Atlantic Alliance and pointed to their sovereign right to decide whether they want to be in the European Union (EU) or NATO.

“It was nothing more than a strategy to encircle Russia, which was then much more open to cooperation with Europe, as well as with NATO,” he said.

If Ukraine entered the military-political bloc, Sevastopol, one of the most important seaports in Russia, would have ended up on the territory of the Western alliance, Schroeder said.

At the same time, he called the return of Crimea to Russia a violation of international law, noting the ineffectiveness of anti-Russian sanctions. “Only in the rarest of cases is the pressure triggered. It is about finding solutions through dialogue, ”he concluded.

According to him, no Russian president will ever give Crimea to Ukraine.

In May 2020, Schroeder called for the lifting of EU sanctions against Russia and called them meaningless. Anyone who believes that sanctions can be used to force Moscow to do something is wrong, he said. He noted that cooperation with Russia is especially necessary in the economic situation that has developed due to the coronavirus epidemic.

[Gennady Fomkin]

after.

Read Schroeder's words carefully in this context:

Merkel's successor showed adequacy to Russia

https://vz.ru/world/2021/1/16/1072582.html 

[cniza]

Gerhard Schroeder: Crimea's reunification with Russia is a response to NATO enlargement

I would say the first step and still follow ...

[7,62x54]

It is unclear for what merits this expat is sitting as chairman. But since this has happened, then I might not even talk about "the entry of Crimea into the Russian Federation, contrary to the norms of international law."
Everything was legal, based on a referendum.

[Kuzmitsky]

It is possible that the "expat" is not just "for some merits sits in the position of chairman", but also works and brings benefits. Uncle, like, intelligent, and treats Russia well. There would be more of them among the Europeans.
As for the norms of international law, the point is not at all in the norms and rules, but in the fact that the Crimeans are satisfied. Indeed, thanks to Russia, the Nazis did not come to them in 2014, as they did to Donbass. And the fleet has to be based somewhere.

[7,62x54]

It is clear that your business is to write under the no-name authorship, according to the manual, but tell me why not all Crimeans handed over Ukrainian passports?

[Kuzmitsky]

To begin with, unlike you, I indicated my name. And the word "training manual" in the last ten years has become such a hackneyed cliché that its use is almost indecent. If it is simpler, the "training manual" is a term from the training manual.

Further in essence. Do not forget that in Crimea there are normal, ordinary, living people who were previously citizens of Ukraine. The reasons why they left Ukrainian passports can be many, and most of them have nothing to do with politics.

For example, it can be relatives (children, parents, brothers, etc.) somewhere in Kherson, Mariupol or Nikolaev. If you go to visit them with a Russian passport, you will have to make a circle of about one and a half thousand kilometers through the Kerch Strait, Rostov, Belgorod, Kharkov. In general, half the country. With a Ukrainian passport, you can get there by a direct road, three or four times faster and cheaper.

This is just one example.

Although, perhaps, there are still those who think that Crimea is Russian temporarily, and therefore left the Ukrainian passport .. But every year there are fewer and fewer of them.

[sharp-lad]

And although Schroeder considers the entry of Crimea into the Russian Federation to be contrary to the norms of international law
And according to what international "law" the territory of Kosovo was taken away from the Serbs?