The pressure on Prime Minister Manuela Schwesig (SPD) because of her commitment to the Russian-German gas pipeline Nord Stream 2 is growing.

Leading Greens politicians expressed clear criticism of the social democrat to the FAZ.

"The interweaving between the Schwerin state government and the Russian state-owned company Gazprom has always been devastating and must now finally be dealt with," said Green Party leader Omid Nouripour.

Schwesig's previous statements are "simply not enough".

Nouripour added, "An 'Oops, must have been a mistake' won't do."

Markus Wehner

Political correspondent in Berlin.

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Matthias Wysuwa

Political correspondent for northern Germany and Scandinavia based in Hamburg.

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The Green politician Anton Hofreiter also calls for a detailed investigation.

"How the government in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania became the henchman of Nord Stream 2 in order to promote the construction of the Baltic Sea pipeline urgently needs to be clarified," Hofreiter told the FAZ. A committee of inquiry was "absolutely necessary".

The CDU foreign politician Norbert Röttgen had previously demanded his resignation.

“If the circumstances recently described in the media are true, then Ms. Schwesig cannot remain in office;

that's completely out of the question," Röttgen told the editorial network Germany.

Hofreiter said the "failed German Russia policy" had to be addressed.

“In retrospect, the fact that we decided to build Nord Stream 2 just one year after the annexation of Crimea and thus wanted to increase our dependence on Russia by supplying fossil energy is an incredible scandal.” The Greens are always against Nord Stream 2, "but from today's perspective we protested too quietly," said Hofreiter.

"That also applies to me as a former parliamentary group leader in the Bundestag," said the Greens politician.

Documents that have become known in the past few days give the impression of an amazing closeness between the state government and Nord Stream 2 AG in recent years.

The state's climate foundation was founded in early 2021 and passed unanimously in the state parliament.

The articles of incorporation provided for an economic business operation to ensure the completion of the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline despite the threat of American sanctions.

The pipeline lands in Western Pomerania.

The foundation was endowed with 200,000 euros from the state and 20 million euros from Nord Stream 2.

The answer to a small question from the Greens parliamentary group in the state parliament, which is available to the FAZ, now gives a long list of meetings between representatives of Nord Stream 2 and the state government.

According to this, Schwesig has also met Matthias Warnig, the managing director of Nord Stream 2 AG, on at least seven days in the past few years.

Warnig once worked for the Stasi and is considered a confidant of Russian President Vladimir Putin.

According to the information, the meetings were events with other guests, but also talks in a small circle.

A dinner was held on September 12, 2020, which was also attended by former Chancellor Gerhard Schröder.

Under the item "Result" is in the list: "Not documented".

Documents from the State Chancellery, which were first quoted by the newspaper "Welt", also give the impression of close coordination between the state government and Nord Stream 2 AG when establishing the foundation and its structure.

For example, the then Energy Minister Christian level (SPD) announced in an e-mail that after a conversation with representatives of Nord Stream 2, he had made three changes that were "close to their hearts".

A communications worker saw the foundation as a 'smart answer'

In another e-mail, a Nord Stream 2 communications employee writes to gauge, among other things, that one should try “to position the foundation with a wink as a ‘smart answer’ to the hard-liner behavior of the USA.” Schwesig found the allegations false rejected.

The idea of ​​founding the company was developed within the state government.

Of course there were also talks with Nord Stream, but decisions were “made by yourself”.

The Green member of the state parliament, Hannes Damm, said on Monday that Schwesig had not provided transparency despite repeated announcements.

All available means would have to be used "to untangle the felt about the SPD prime minister".

The Greens, CDU and FDP in the Schwerin state parliament have already announced that they will set up a parliamentary committee of inquiry into the foundation and its background in May.

Anton Hofreiter also criticized the CDU.

"Although there was apparently a particular ideological susceptibility in parts of the SPD when it came to making the Russian dictatorship appear in a mild light," he told the FAZ, "North Stream 2 was decided under a CDU chancellor." Also in the northeast, the CDU was involved in the government when the so-called climate foundation was founded to push through the construction of the pipeline.