The EU Parliament calls for sanctions against the former chancellor

Gerhard Schröder

The former chancellor must expect to end up on the EU sanctions list.

(Photo: dpa)

Brussels A large majority of the European Parliament voted in favor of EU sanctions against ex-Chancellor Gerhard Schröder. The reason is the ongoing activity of the SPD politician for Russian state companies such as the energy company Rosneft, according to a resolution passed in Brussels on Thursday.

Parliament cannot impose sanctions itself. These sensitive foreign policy issues are reserved for the member states. Trade penalties aimed at companies or even entire sectors of the economy are designed by the commission headed by Ursula von der Leyen. Drawing up lists of sanctions for individuals is the responsibility of the foreign service, which reports to the EU foreign policy chief, Josep Borrell.

The move by the EU Parliament is likely to increase the pressure on von der Leyen and Borrell to submit a proposal for Schröder’s inclusion on the EU sanctions list. In concrete terms, the procedure works in such a way that the Commission, together with the European External Action Service, submits a proposal that then has to be accepted by the EU ambassadors of the member states. After that, Schröder’s assets in the EU could be frozen.

The CSU in the Bundestag now sees the federal government’s turn to act at EU level. “Chancellor Olaf Scholz must campaign at the European Council for severe sanctions against former SPD chancellor Gerhard Schröder,” said the parliamentary director of the CSU in the Bundestag, Stefan Müller, the Handelsblatt. “The German government must not simply ignore the broad vote of the European Parliament.”

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Since the start of the Russian war of aggression, the EU has continuously expanded the group of sanctioned persons. The list includes oligarchs and Russian military personnel, even President Vladimir Putin himself.

Bundestag wants to remove Schröder’s privileges

Schröder was Chancellor from 1998 to 2005. He then took on tasks for the pipeline company Nord Stream, Russia’s Gazprom and the energy company Rosneft, among others. Because he did not distance himself from this after the start of the Russian war against Ukraine, the SPD leadership asked him to leave the party. There are also motions for expulsion from the party. The traffic light coalition of SPD, Greens and FDP also wants to cut the 78-year-old’s office and employees. The Budget Committee of the Bundestag probably wanted to vote on Thursday.

The text of the European Parliament now calls on the EU states to “extend the list of people against whom EU sanctions have been imposed to include European board members of large Russian companies and politicians who continue to receive money from Russia “.

Parliament named former EU heads of government such as Wolfgang Bowl (Austria) and François Fillon (France), who recently resigned from their posts at Russian companies. They demand “emphatically that other politicians, such as Karin Kneissl and Gerhard Schröder, do the same”. Kneissl is a non-party former foreign minister of Austria and a member of the Rosneft supervisory board.

In Germany, too, Schröder is now expecting consequences. In future, the chancellor will have to relinquish some of his privileges. The Budget Committee of the Bundestag decided on Thursday to close its office – but the SPD politician should continue to receive a pension and personal protection, as the German Press Agency learned from committee circles.

More: Gerhard Schröder is to lose his office as former chancellor – and end up on the EU sanctions list

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