Schröder did not violate the party’s statutes by cooperating with Russian dictator Vladimir Putin and holding positions in Russian state enterprises, the Hanover branch of the SPD, of which the former chancellor is a member, announced on Monday.
This decision can be appealed within two weeks.
The case against Schroeder was brought after 17 demands were received from various branches of the party for his expulsion.
However, the committee has recognized that the former chancellor did not violate the party’s statutes and that he had no reason to express even a condemnation.
Schröder himself did not participate in the several-week long case review and did not send his representative to the committee either.
The 78-year-old Schroeder, who was the chancellor of Germany from 1998 to 2005, has been widely criticized for holding high positions in Russian energy companies, and only after a lot of public pressure did the former chancellor give up the chairmanship of the board of the Russian energy company “Rosneft” in May.
Later, Schröder also announced that he would not take a position on the board of directors of the Russian gas concern Gazprom, to which he had been nominated.
In May, the German parliament stripped Schroeder of several privileges as a former chancellor.
However, in a recent interview with the private broadcaster RTL/ntv, Schröder once again refused to distance himself from Putin.
He also advocated for the controversial Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline, which was halted after Russia’s repeated invasion of Ukraine.
Recently, Schroeder has also launched an open campaign, trying to convince the West that Ukraine needs to force the satisfaction of Moscow’s territorial demands.
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