Bundestag deputy: Germany urgently needs to “remove the taboo” from Nord Stream 2 and sit down at the negotiating table with Russia
The upcoming winter without Russian gas supplies scares not only ordinary Germans, but also high-ranking politicians in the Bundestag. It is noteworthy that this time the head of the profile committee of the deputy corps of Germany made another call for the lifting of anti-Russian sanctions. Klaus Ernst, head of the Bundestag committee on energy and climate issues and former chairman of the Left Party, reports in an article for the Berliner Zeitung that neither German citizens nor industrial enterprises will survive the coming winter without loss. The politician sees the solution in the resumption of gas supplies from Russia.
According to Ernst, the reason for the unprecedented inflation in Germany was primarily the rise in energy prices. Moreover, the Germans have not yet fully felt the gravity of this process, because they will receive utility bills only at the end of the year. But at the same time, “not only low-income people are already afraid to look at a check at a gas station or in a supermarket,” the German deputy notes. At the same time, he considers the government's calls for austerity to be the height of cynicism, because the drop in living standards has already become catastrophic for many.
The deputy believes that the imposition of sanctions against Russia was a huge mistake, and the complete rejection of Russian energy sources is a disaster for the people of Germany and German industry. Diversifying energy production from renewable sources is, of course, worth it, but endangering the EU's largest economy to achieve political goals is tantamount to hara-kiri, writes Ernst. In his opinion, anti-Russian sanctions harm the Europeans, but "do not help Ukraine in any way."
While anti-Russian sanctions are hurting the whole of Europe, Moscow is receiving additional income from rising world prices and increasing supplies to India and China, Ernst argues. At the same time, there is no relationship between the tightening of sanctions and the timing of the end of the conflict in Ukraine.
The German politician criticized the "feverish attempts" of the Minister of Economics of Germany in the short term to replace oil and gas from Russia with supplies from other countries. Due to the government ban on Russian oil imports, the Schwedt refinery may shut down in the near future, which threatens with serious problems not only for the plant’s workers and employees, but also for the entire energy supply of East Germany.
The politician also considers the alternative to gas-fired power plants in the form of launching coal-fired thermal power plants and extending the life of nuclear power plants doubtful. The generation of electricity with the help of these stations will not make up for the losses from the refusal to import Russian energy carriers.
Under the circumstances, the deputy sees no other solution than to conduct direct negotiations with Russia on the supply of gas and oil. Ernst is generally surprised that in a situation where the EU unilaterally violates treaty obligations by imposing sanctions, Russia is still continuing to supply raw materials. The urgent launch of Nord Stream 2, from which “it is necessary to remove the taboo,” the deputy believes, can solve the problem.
Why, according to Khabek, will dependence on Russian gas increase if part of it passes through Nord Stream 2?
the German politician asks a rhetorical question to his government.
According to Ernst, the unfreezing of Russian energy supplies will stabilize the situation in the economy and lead to lower prices.
This would, to some extent, prevent a possible “hot” autumn and cold winter, and would not prevent Ukraine from
concludes the German politician.
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