The press service of the German government today issued a statement, which indirectly informs about Berlin's readiness for the lifting of the anti-Russian sanctions.
The document sets out the personal position of the German Chancellor Angela Merkel on the issue and the recognition that it may differ with the position of those who actually makes the decision in accordance with EU legislation.
"Merkel sees no reason for rolling back or easing the sanctions against Russia, but the decision is made by the European Union," RIA Novosti cited the German government's statement as saying.
The head of the Center for Strategic Development of the CIS Countries under the RAS Institute of Europe, Alexander Gusev, speaking to Vestnik Kavkaza, noted that Germany, in particular, Angela Merkel, in general, reflects the European Union's position on the lifting of the anti-Russian sanctions, therefore, it is early to talk about their cancellation, at least before the end of this year.
According to him, a more conciliatory stance, voiced earlier by the German Minister of Foreign Affairs Frank-Walter Steinmeier, will not affect Germany's policy on the issue. "Angela Merkel is the chancellor, and Steinmeier is just the Minister of Foreign Affairs, although he enjoys a sufficiently large support in Germany," the expert explained.
At the same time, he stressed that Steinmeier certainly has a desire to lift the sanctions.
"We believe that the lifting of sanctions is out of question in this year and maybe even two next years. Especially considering the fact that Russia has imposed a counter-embargo to the European Union," the political expert believes.
However, he drew attention to the fact that the lifting of sanctions against Russia is advantageous for Germany, because Berlin has lost about 100 billion euros from restrictive measures against Moscow. "The German business, a number of federal ministers insist the sanctions to be lifted. For example, the North Rhine-Westphalia adheres to this opinion. The head of Bavaria also declared that they are ready to consider the gradual lifting of the sanctions against Russia in the Bundesrat. But we must understand here that the position of Merkel and the entire government is moderated by the United States," Alexander Gusev summed up.
