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“Great hopes” for Scholz’s visit to Russia
Chancellor Olaf Scholz wants to meet Russian President Vladimir Putin on Tuesday. Photo: Christophe Gateau/dpa
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Chancellor Olaf Scholz is expected in Russia on Tuesday. Relations between Berlin and Moscow are strained. The German-Russian Chamber of Commerce warns to break off contacts and freeze projects.
The German economy in Russia is placing “great hopes” on the visit of Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD) to Russian President Vladimir Putin in the Kremlin.
“The conflict surrounding Ukraine must definitely be resolved peacefully and with the means of diplomacy,” said the President of the German-Russian Chamber of Commerce Abroad (AHK), Rainer Seele, on Sunday. Scholz will first visit Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyj this Monday and Putin in Moscow on Tuesday. Relations between Germany and Russia are more tense than they have been in decades due to a large number of conflicts.
Seele warned against cutting off contacts and freezing projects. That does not reduce tensions, but “more confrontation”. The manager spoke out in favor of intensifying contacts. “Even in the darkest times of the Cold War, the German economy was always a bridge between Germany and the Soviet Union.” Despite the sanctions due to the Ukraine conflict and despite the restrictions imposed by the corona pandemic, German companies have invested around 7.6 billion euros in Russia over the past five years, the chamber said.
German companies expect Scholz to raise other issues at his meeting with Putin, including the new compulsory medical tests for foreigners wanting to work in Russia. “German and foreign managers and engineers are exposed to a discriminatory and time-consuming procedure that is detrimental to the investment climate, even though they are promoting investments in Russia in their home countries,” says AHK CEO Matthias Schepp.
Since January, foreigners living in Russia have had to undergo tests every three months, including for drugs, syphilis and other diseases, under a law signed by Putin. X-rays are also planned, which are controversial because of the dangerous radiation exposure. Children from the age of six and spouses must also be tested. “The resentment among managers, engineers, scientists and researchers will remain great. The regulation should be suspended,” said Schepp.