The coronavirus pandemic has complicated the Russian-German exchange not only at the level of foreign ministers, but also through many initiatives and formats. This was stated by German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas during a joint press conference following talks with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, promising to take all possible measures to normalize the dialogue between the two countries.

“We saw from the foreign policy dossier that the pandemic and the coronacrisis have complicated our work ... But we will do everything to return to the previous level of our exchange as soon as possible, both at the political level and in the spheres of economy, science and culture,” he said. Maas.

According to him, "silence should not reign in relations" between Berlin and Moscow.

“And certainly not (this should not happen. - RT ) due to some practical problems. It's very good where you need to talk, speak openly. And in the past we have always done just that, ”he recalled.

The German minister paid special attention to arms control, stressing that "time is running out here."

“Russia and the United States bear a special responsibility (including - RT ) with regard to the nonproliferation treaty and the strengthening of its regime. Therefore, even today we are talking about taking everything necessary, for example, to extend the START III treaty. This will give us time to get China involved in arms control over time, because it is imperative to do so. Indeed, it is very important that those tendencies in the context of arms control, which go in the wrong direction, do not intensify, ”Heiko Maas emphasized.

  • Russian Foreign Ministry and German Foreign Ministry
  • © Natalia Selivyorstova / RIA Novosti; Magnus Bäck / Wikipedia

Let us remind you that Beijing has repeatedly noted that it is not interested in this kind of dialogue. The Russian side, in turn, stated that it respects the decision of the PRC.

"Sovereign decision"

Another topic of the meeting was the implementation of the Nord Stream 2 project, which the United States actively opposes.

“From the economic block, we focused on the completion of the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline construction project. Of course, we took into account the unprecedented sanctions pressure from the United States. We value Berlin's position, a principled position in support of this exclusively commercial initiative, which will help diversify natural gas supply routes and strengthen Europe's energy security based on the assessments that Europe itself, the European countries themselves make, and not on the basis of assessments that are made from overseas, "said Sergei Lavrov.

At the same time, Moscow and Berlin opposed the extraterritorial sanctions of the United States, affecting the construction of the gas pipeline. Heiko Maas called such actions of Washington "the wrong way".

“And in the end, this is our sovereign decision from where we will buy energy resources. No state can dictate energy policy to the European Union through threats. And here at the EU level we are also discussing this topic, to what extent extraterritorial sanctions violate international law, ”Maas said, recalling the special importance of transatlantic ties.

Sergei Lavrov, in turn, said that Moscow considers Washington's restrictions "unlawful", stressing that "the United States does not see any red lines for itself here" and pursues "without any diplomatic formalization, roughly one simple goal - the United States should have the right to do whatever they please. "

It is worth noting that on the eve of the meeting between the foreign ministers of the Russian Federation and the Federal Republic of Germany, one of the European partners of Nord Stream 2, the German company Uniper, published a report in which the project may be disrupted due to the expected new US sanctions.

"As the US ramps up its efforts to impose targeted sanctions on the Nord Stream 2 project, there is a growing risk that the pipeline will be delayed or incomplete," the company said in a statement.

  • Construction of Nord Stream 2
  • © Bernd WUESTNECK / dpa / AFP

At the same time, Uniper noted that Nord Stream 2 is working to mitigate the consequences of the suspension of pipe-laying work, and a number of European countries and the European Union provide significant political support to the project.

"Development of general quarantine measures"

It is worth noting that Meuse's working visit to Russia is his second trip outside the EU after the relaxation of the restrictive measures imposed due to the pandemic. Before flying to Moscow, the German Foreign Minister told reporters that relations between Germany and the Russian Federation "are too important to let them go."

As the German newspaper Die Welt wrote earlier, Maas was to bring to Moscow a collective letter from European businessmen with a request to open the borders of Russia. The publication noted that EU companies have been suffering huge losses for the fifth month due to restrictions related to coronavirus. At the same time, the mutual opening of borders could have a beneficial effect on investment and maintenance projects, the newspaper writes.

Commenting on the latest statements by the head of German diplomacy, experts interviewed by RT stated that, building the current political course, Berlin, on the one hand, “is signaling an increase in economic cooperation,” and on the other, “it makes it clear that it has some disagreements with Moscow on political questions ".

At the same time, analysts note the "evidence" of the strong influence of the United States on Germany in the context of its relations with Russia.

“In addition, there are different interest groups in Germany itself: in addition to business oriented towards Russia, there is also a pro-American lobby that would like the FRG to follow strictly in the wake of Washington. Moreover, do not forget that Germany and the United States are linked by NATO membership and bilateral relations, including economic ones, ”Vladimir Olenchenko, senior researcher at the Center for European Studies at the IMEMO RAS, explained in an interview with RT.

Alexander Kamkin, a leading researcher at the Center for German Studies at the Institute of Europe of the Russian Academy of Sciences, believes that Berlin "is forced to maneuver between the economic expediency of relations with Russia and the fulfillment of obligations to Washington," but is aimed at a constructive dialogue with the Russian Federation.

“The USA is the main market for high-tech German products. And the German economy is still export-oriented, so, of course, Berlin will not break ties with Washington. However, Germany will try to build a balanced policy, taking into account the peculiarities of the German-Russian and German-American vectors, ”Kamkin predicted the situation in an interview with RT.

In his opinion, this will be facilitated primarily by the fact that the US position on Nord Stream 2 “categorically does not suit Berlin”.

“It makes German politicians nervous. And this topic is, in fact, pouring water on the mill for improving Russian-German relations, ”the analyst explained.

Vladimir Olenchenko has a similar point of view. He believes that Berlin and Moscow "will be able to overcome US opposition to the construction of the gas pipeline."

  • Flags of Russia and Germany
  • Reuters
  • © Alexander Natruskin

“I am confident that this project will be implemented, despite all the obstacles that Washington puts in its way,” the analyst said.

Alexander Kamkin also believes that, despite the "very strong pressure" from the American side, "Berlin will make every effort to complete the project."

“Too much political and economic effort has been spent by all parties involved in the consortium to suddenly surrender now,” Kamkin says.

Analysts also agreed that the coronavirus pandemic has created a new direction for building up a mutually beneficial partnership between Moscow and Berlin.

“This is a joint work on the development of vaccines, the development of general quarantine measures. Moreover, now many are talking about the possibility of a second wave of the pandemic. Here, of course, there is something to work on together. And the situation with COVID-19 can serve as such a test of trust, a test of strength in interstate Russian-German relations, ”Kamkin said.

Vladimir Olenchenko predicts that "the crisis situation will further increase the interest of German business in relations with Russia."

“Berlin will try to promote its goods on the Russian market in order to overcome its own difficulties in this way,” the expert concluded.