Vladislav Grigoriev10:35, 10.01.25

Merkel also recalled how she worked with Putin to circumvent US sanctions against the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline.

Russian dictator Vladimir Putin has entrusted former German Chancellor Angela Merkel  with the power of veto to keep Ukraine out of NATO.

This is stated in her memoirs, which were analyzed by the chief European political correspondent of The Wall Street Journal,  Boyan Panchevski.

“But you will not be chancellor forever,” Merkel quoted Putin as saying in the book.

The former German Chancellor also stated in her memoirs that the war in Ukraine should end with peace talks. She stressed that this conflict cannot be won with weapons.

“It would be a mistake to underestimate Putin. Our strength is great, but not unlimited,” Merkel wrote about Europe’s reaction to the war in her book.

Panchevski recalled that Merkel was previously called “Putin’s whisperer” because she could easily restrain the Russian dictator. However, analysts now believe that she is, in particular, to blame for the Russian president’s decision to attack Ukraine.

The correspondent also shared that Merkel is often criticized for her decision to quickly shut down Germany’s nuclear energy program in the past decade after the 2011 accident at Japan’s Fukushima reactors, which left Germany dependent on Russian energy.

In addition, in her memoirs, the former German chancellor recalls working with Putin to circumvent US sanctions against the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline. She helped him build the pipeline, seeking to double Russian gas exports to Germany, even after Russia annexed Crimea in 2014.

“It was necessary to ensure the security of Germany’s powerful industrial base,” she explained her decision in the book.

Merkel also noted that work on the gas pipeline would guarantee jobs and, as a result, social security. According to her, refusing to cooperate with Putin “was impossible.”

She emphasized in her book that the Russian dictator even told her that he was trying to destroy the EU.

In her memoirs, Merkel expressed the opinion that the international noise about the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline was disingenuous. She is sure that the US wanted to sell its own gas, and Poland and Ukraine acted out of economic interests.

(c)UNIAN 2025