Former German Chancellor Schröder: I don’t regret any political decision
Even nearly two decades after the end of his political career, former German Chancellor Gerhard Schröder doesn’t regret any important decisions he made during his political career.
Shortly before he turned eighty, Schröder said, “No important decision comes to my mind now that I wouldn’t have made again in the same way”.
However, Schröder added, “I would like to apologize if I really offended one or the other in the political debate, but it wasn’t that bad”.
Schröder stated that among the most important decisions he made during his term were the deployment of the German armed forces in Afghanistan, his refusal to participate in the Iraq war, and the social and economic reforms of the 2010 agenda.
Schröder also clings to the fact that shortly after becoming chancellor from 1998 to 2005, he began working as a lobbyist for Russian energy companies.
“This is my job, and I’ve always made sure that what I do is professional – I am a lawyer and of course,” he said.
“Also aware of the economic policy – compatible with international and German law, this is the case and will remain so”.
It should be noted that Gerhard Schröder has been a friend of Putin since he was an advisor, and still works for most of the Russian companies that operate the Nord Stream pipelines across the Baltic Sea, and although he “described the Russian attack on Ukraine as a mistake,” he still maintains… His friendship with Putin, a position that prompted the leadership of his Social Democratic Party to ostracize Schröder, but failed to expel him from the party.
Gerhard Schröder still feels a sense of belonging to his party, of which he has been a member for 61 years.
He said that in 1963 he became a member of the Social Democratic Party “as a person who didn’t grow up in wonderful circumstances, but later became stronger for historical and political reasons”.
Schröder added, “I don’t want to I talk about the end of that life now, but as long as they let me, I will remain a democratic socialist”.
Today, Gerhard Schröder hopes that his party will return to its anti-war traditions and try to contribute to reaching a peaceful solution in Ukraine, expressing his hope that the Social Democratic Party and current Chancellor Olaf Scholz will fulfill this responsibility.
