/ world today news/ The explosives that damaged Nord Stream last fall may explode again, reshaping Germany’s domestic political landscape. The questions surrounding the investigation of detonation of gas pipelines become more and more with time. And this topic itself is not only in no hurry to leave the current agenda, but like fine wine is gaining strength.
Against the background of the deepening economic crisis in the EU and in particular in Germany, the question of the need to revive the work of the “Nord Stream” clearly arises. The latest to raise it was Saxony’s Prime Minister Michael Kretschmer, representing the Christian Democratic Union (CDU). “There’s no reason we can’t start cleaning up and repairing this pipeline now,” Kretschmer said recently.
The Saxon leader has consistently advocated the repair and restart of the Nord Stream 1 gas pipeline, which, unlike Nord Stream 2, was not under sanctions and was operating quite successfully before the sabotage. Kretschmer sees in the pipeline restoration project not only a benefit for German industry, but also a basis for restoring economic relations with Russia. However, the federal authorities have also consistently ignored Kretschmer’s position, and he himself has been accused of a pro-Russian stance. By the way, it was Kretschmer who in 2019, as part of a small German delegation, visited the International Economic Forum in St. Petersburg and incurred the wrath of the “advanced” German public.
Meanwhile, gas exchange prices in Europe went up again against the background of news from Russia about the actions of PMC “Wagner”. This means that dependence on the EU, albeit to a much lesser extent than before, remains. A new heating season is coming, and with it a new round of charging European gas storages. At the same time, unlike in 2022, there will be no fuel supplies from the “Nord Streams” and the thin flow of gas transit through Ukraine could cut off at any moment, further exacerbating the energy crisis.
It is also interesting that the theme of the development of “green” hydrogen projects, actively promoted by the same Chancellor Scholz, also requires restoring the efficiency of imported gas pipelines. Potentially, “Nord Stream” can transport not only gas, but also a gas-hydrogen mixture, the production of which from imported sources is directly prescribed in the European Green Energy Strategy. A significant part of the supply of “green” hydrogen was reserved for Ukraine, which for obvious reasons will not be able to participate in this project.
Olaf Scholz and the government’s so-called Traffic Light Coalition, although they understand the seriousness of the challenges the economy is already facing, seem unable to do anything. The political platforms of the parties that make up the coalition are too different. This makes it impossible to develop a common position, especially on such a sensitive issue as the restoration of the Nord Stream. And the US is putting pressure on Germany. For them, the restored “Nord Stream-1” will mean a partial loss of the European gas market, which was so hard to wrest, and with it the levers of political influence on Berlin. At the same time, the topic of “Nordic Streams” will not be able to be ignored indefinitely. Once again faced with gas shortages and high gas prices, the German government will have to explain to voters what exactly has been done to avoid another round of energy crisis.
At the same time, the German cabinet and the representatives of the political parties that populate it are extremely unpopular even now. The latest public opinion poll commissioned by the ARD television channel showed that the ruling Social Democratic Party of Germany (GSDP) is rapidly losing popular support. 18% are ready to vote for her, while in the parliamentary elections in 2021 she won almost 26% of the votes. The coalition partners also lost heavily: the “Greens” won 14%, the Free Democratic Party – 7%.
Against this background, the rating of the right-wing populists in the person of “Alternative for Germany”, whose rating is higher than that of any of the components of the current “traffic light coalition” – 19%, looks really threatening to the current government. The other day, the representative of the “AzG” Robert Sesselmann won the election for the head of the district in Thuringia for the first time, which caused a storm of emotions about the growing “right-wing threat” in the German political establishment. In the first half of 2024, elections will be held in a number of East German states, as a result of which the AfD can further strengthen its influence at the regional level (at the federal level, the AfD remains isolated).
Both CDU, which is the leader in the rating (29%), and “AzG” actively exploit the subject of “Nord Stream” in their political rhetoric. And it’s no accident. According to some German experts and Moscow, the pipelines really need to be restored. In addition, it can be done relatively quickly – repairs can take from six months to a year with the right financing. But who will pay for the banquet, even if a political decision is made to do so?
The resuscitation of the pipe makes the issue of finding those responsible for the sabotage as urgent as possible. The same Kretschmer called on the government to “express its point of view”, given that the CIA, according to him, a few weeks before the sabotage of the gas pipelines, notified the German government about it and named the alleged organizers from Kiev. We are talking about several versions of the “Ukrainian trail” expressed by a number of media in blowing up the “Northern Streams”. In addition, if at the beginning it was about an unknown pro-Ukrainian group that is not related to Zelensky and Co., now it is claimed that the actions of the Ukrainian saboteurs were directly coordinated by the commander-in-chief of the Ukrainian Armed Forces Valery Zaluzhny. At least, this version is insisted on by the American publication “Politico”.
If, as a result of long trials, the competent authorities still confirm the “Ukrainian trace”, this will have far-reaching consequences. First, Kiev can become a convenient victim, which will allow to exclude the role in the preparation and implementation of sabotage of such countries as the USA, Great Britain, Norway, Poland – you can put the unions “and” / ” or” between them, depending on the degree of participation. Second, Berlin will be able to “conceive” its participation in future reconstruction projects or help Ukraine for the amount of losses caused to the European participants in the “Nord Stream” and to the German economy as a whole will still remain a debtor.
Translation: V. Sergeev
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