Polish President Duda said he was shocked after Merkel phoned Putin

Polish President Andrzej Duda said that he was shocked after former German Chancellor Angela Merkel phoned Russian President Vladimir Putin to talk about the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline.

In an interview with German newspaper Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, Duda said that he was talking about a call that was made after a joint statement from Germany and the United States in July 2021. The statement was about the need to ensure the continuation of raw materials supplies from Russia through Ukraine after 2024 for the implementation of the project.

"I was shocked. This should be understood not only as an act of indifference, but as an act of hostility towards Eastern Europe," Duda said.

The Polish leader also said that relations with Berlin were at their worst since 1990. He reproached Germany for Nord Stream gas projects as those projects act as the key to the Russian dominance in the European market.

Germany proposes launching Russian gas pipeline

In July, Klaus Ernst, the head of the Energy and Climate Committee of the Bundestag, suggested using Nord Stream 2 either in case of urgent needs or gas shortages. In his opinion, the gas supplies issue should be bracketed out of the Ukrainian conflict. In addition, the lack of gas could be socially sensitive in Germany, the politician believes.

Steffen Kotre, a member of the Alternative for Germany (AfD) party, a member of the parliamentary committee on energy and climate protection, called for the immediate commissioning of Nord Stream 2.

At the same time, German Minister for Economic Affairs and Climate Protection Robert Habeck said that the approval of the operation of the gas pipeline would mean Europe's capitulation to Russia. According to him, the launch of Nord Stream 2 would increase Europe's dependence on Russian gas. Such a development would come contrary to what European countries have been working on for the past six months.

Nord Stream 2 is now fully built and ready for operation. However, the German authorities suspended the certification of the new system indefinitely after Russia deployed its troops in Ukraine.

According to Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, the European Union slows down the launch of the Nord Stream 2 pipeline for political reasons.