Contents tagged with Angela Merkel

  • Merkel says she is not as critical about Nord Stream 2 as Kyiv

    At a meeting with Andriy Parubiy, Ukrainian Parliament Speaker, and the heads of parliamentary groups in Kyiv ,German Chancellor Angela Merkel said that she is not as critical about the Nord Stream 2 project as Kyiv and favors preserving gas transit through Ukraine after 2019.

    "We know that Ukraine is against this project. I am less critical about the project and I am in favor of Ukraine having guarantees, that Ukraine will preserve its transit role," Merkel said.

    Ukrainian President Petro …

  • Putin wants Europe to participate in the restoration of Syria

    Before meeting with German Chancellor Angela Merkel,  Russian President Vladimir Putin has called on Europe “to contribute to the reconstruction of Syria to allow millions of refugees to return home.” 

    "We need to strengthen the humanitarian effort in the Syrian conflict,” he said. "By that, I mean above all, humanitarian aid to the Syrian people and help the regions where refugees living abroad can return to." According to him, there were one million refugees in Jordan, the same number in …

  • Berlin: Germany will not give up energy projects with Russia because of the US position

    Germany will not give up agreements with Russia in the energy sector, in particular, on the construction of the Nord Stream-2 gas pipeline due to the US position, announced Andrea Nahles, the head of the Social Democratic Party, in an interview with the newspaper Funke Mediengruppe.

    “We cannot afford to be dissuaded from our agreements in the field of energy policy only because the US President cannot accept this,” noted Nahles.

    Earlier, it was reported in the German Committee on Eastern  …

  • Merkel: Ukraine must remain a gas transit country

    German Chancellor Angela Merkel and Russian President Vladimir Putin issued a joint press statement saying that they discussed the transit of gas to the European Union through Ukraine in the Meseberg meeting, Interfax reported on Saturday, August 18.

    "In the context of Ukraine, we also talked about the transit of gas. I believe that even after the launch of the Nord Stream-2, Ukraine must continue to play its role in gas transit to Europe." I am very pleased that we managed to begin the …

  • Putin attends Austrian foreign minister’s wedding with gift and gives a toast

    One of Russian President Vladimir Putin’s gifts to Austrian Foreign Minister Karin Kneisl was a painting with rural motifs, depicting the places where Kneisl’s husband Wolfgang Meilinger is from, reported Putin’s spokesperson Dmitry Peskov.

    “Putin gave the newlyweds a painting with rural motifs, because her husband is from precisely these places, and he also gave an ancient butter squeezer and a Tula samovar,” Russian news agency TASS cites Peskov as saying.

    The Russian president’s spokesman …

  • Ukrainian President speaks with Merkel before Putin's visit to Germany

    On Thursday, August 16, President Petro Poroshenko had a telephone conversation with German Chancellor Angela Merkel ahead of the visit of the Russian President Vladimir Putin to Germany, the press service of the Ukrainian President announced.

    The leaders of Ukraine and Germany coordinated their positions ahead of Putin's visit. They discussed the situation in the Donbas and further efforts aimed at peaceful reconciliation.

    Poroshenko reminded Merkel about the Ukrainian political prisoners …

  • Putin to attend the wedding of Austrian Minister of Foreign Affairs

    Russian President Vladimir Putin intends to attend the wedding of the Minister of Foreign affairs of Austria, reported Austrian media outlets on August 15th. Dmitry Peskov, a representative for the Russian leader also confirmed this intention.

    He noted that Putin will “drop by” the wedding “on the way to Berlin.” Talks between the Russian President and German Chancellor Angela Merkel are planned there.

    The Austrian Foreign Minister Karin Kneissl is marrying a financier and entrepreneur …

  • Merkel: Russian annexation of Crimea and war in Donbas justify increase in German defense expenditures

    Russia’s annexation of the Crimea and its support of separatists in the East of Ukraine have become prime reasons for Germany to increase its defense expenditure, Merkel stated, DW reports.

    "Challenges faced by NATO have changed dramatically in recent years,” Merkel stated. According to the German Chancellor, it is important for NATO to focus on the protection of the Alliance after Russia’s annexation of the Crimea and its support of separatists in the East of Ukraine.

    "To do this, we should …

  • Angela Merkel sees no reason why Russia should be restored in G8

    German Chancellor Angela Merkel feels that the decision to exclude Russia from the international G8 forum was correct, and she sees no reason why the country should be restored, despite tense relations with the U.S. Merkel said this in answer to a question asked by a deputy of the Bundestag who belongs to the right-wing Alternative for Germany party.

    According to Merkel, the G8 forum is based on respect for international law, which Russia has brazenly violated.

    “The annexation of Crimea was a …

  • Merkel condemns violations of the ceasefire in the Donbas

    German Chancellor Angela Merkel expressed deep concern about the repeated violations of ceasefire in the east of Ukraine during the visit to the Italian town of Assisi .

    “Ukraine concerns us, and in the ‘Normandy Format’ that unites Germany, France, Russia and Ukraine, we try to get the Minsk Agreements implemented. But ceasefire is violated every day; people are dying every day,” she said.

    Merkel arrived in Assisi to receive the Franciscan order’s “Lamp of Peace” award for seeking the …