"If I understand the constitutional order in Germany correctly, there is only one federal chancellor in Germany, and that's me," Scholz said in an interview with Germany's second channel of ZDF television, responding to questions about former chancellor and current Russian gas lobbyist Gerhard Schröder's interventions in the Ukrainian crisis. "I did not ask him for advice nor did he give it to me," the chancellor said tartly, assuring that the Social Democratic Party (SPD) is united and fully supports his policies. However, he declined to answer questions about whether and when he spoke with Russian Federation President Vladimir Putin and when he plans to go to Moscow.
In response to criticism that in the Ukraine crisis, and especially with regard to the operation of the Nord Stream 2 pipeline, Berlin is reacting particularly cautiously and belatedly, causing its allies to doubt its credibility, Olaf Scholz dismissed the assumption and said that "our allies know exactly what they can expect from us." He added that Germany has made available two billion euros in aid to Ukraine.
Regarding the management of the pandemic, the issue of compulsory vaccination and the strategy of openness that other countries are pursuing and that many federal states are now calling for, the Chancellor referred to the numbers of cases which are constantly increasing and explained that in Germany the increase in cases came much later than in other European countries. Relaxation steps, he explained, would be discussed after we have passed the peak of the current wave. "But unfortunately we are not there yet," he said."
In the past few days, comments with the hashtag #curseSalts and posts with pictures of Olaf Scholz as a missing person or ironic references, such as the Christian Social Union (CSU) paraphrasing the title of a children's book, "The Chancellor hides better than Walter", circulated widely on social media. Moreover, especially on the issue of Ukraine, the SPD faces the issue of nostalgics of Willy Brandt's "Ostpolitik", who express understanding for Moscow's stance. Newly elected leader of the Christian Democratic Party (CDU) Friedrich Merz also accused Olaf Scholz of a "leadership deficit", noting that his predecessor (i.e. Gerhard Schröder) has recently been appearing in Berlin more often than him. On the other hand, in response to a question about this criticism, Olaf Schultz's spokesman Steffen Hempestreit limited himself to stating: "I take all criticism seriously."
Source: APM
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