Since the start of the Russian attack on Ukraine, the German government's travel agencies have been working flat out.

Not only Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD) and Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock (Greens) are on the road as crisis diplomats.

Economics Minister Robert Habeck (Greens) is also traveling the world to make Germany independent of Russian energy imports as quickly as possible.

Christopher Ehrhardt

Correspondent for the Arab countries based in Beirut.

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Julia Loehr

Business correspondent in Berlin.

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He has already been to America and Norway, this Saturday he is leaving for Qatar and the United Arab Emirates with a business delegation.

It is primarily about liquefied natural gas (LNG), but also about environmentally friendly produced hydrogen.

Gas from the Arab sheikhs instead of Russia's President Vladimir Putin?

In Berlin, people are aware that a trip like this raises questions.

Ever since Qatar won the soccer World Cup this year, the country's treatment of migrant workers has been a focus.

Human rights organizations consider the reforms initiated by the government to be insufficient.

Values ​​should play a more important role in politics

At the same time, the Greens in Germany have always emphasized that values ​​should play a more important role in foreign and economic policy.

But the war in Ukraine is shifting priorities here too.

So far, Germany has received 55 percent of its gas imports and a third of its oil supplies from Russia.

These numbers should now quickly go to zero.

And Qatar, as the world's second largest LNG exporter (see chart), can help.

Franziska Brantner (Greens), Parliamentary State Secretary in the Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Protection, defends this approach.

“Germany is dependent on Russia for energy and dependent on China for non-energy raw materials and exports.

It's not sustainable," she says.

Greater diversification in trade relations is needed.

"But we will not let up on human rights standards and climate protection because of this." The ministry announced before Habeck's departure that the trip would be about "exchange on social values" in addition to economic relations.

The emirate dampens expectations

Qatar is pushing itself as a substitute supplier to Russia because of its high gas reserves.

However, the Qatari leadership has repeatedly - and in no uncertain terms - attempted to dampen Western expectations.

“Most LNG deliveries are tied to long-term contracts and clear destinations.

So it's almost impossible to replace this amount so quickly," Energy Minister Saad al-Kaabi said two days before the attack on Ukraine.

The skeptical tones from Doha coincide with the assessment of industry observers.

According to a report by analysts at S&P Global, around 80 percent of gas supplies are tied to long-term contracts, mostly with Asian customers.

Gas available for short-term diversion accounts for only about 13 percent of European and British imports from Russia, according to estimates from the Qatari press.