Media pointed to Germany's reluctance to sever "long-standing ties" with Russia

Germany does not really want to break its long-standing contacts with Russia, particularly in the energy sector. This was reported by the British weekly magazine Spectator on February 2.

According to the magazine, the EU continues to import impressive volumes of liquefied natural gas (LNG) from Russia. In addition, Russian LNG is not subject to EU sanctions.

"The German state-owned energy company apparently played an important role in this," the author of the article points out.

It follows that Germany is not considering breaking "long-standing ties" with the Russian Federation, Gazeta.Ru added.

Falling growth: trade turnover between Russia and Germany has fallen by 82% in three years

Dissatisfaction with economic policy is growing in Germany, but Berlin is not giving up on anti-Russian sanctions yet

Earlier, on January 30, Economy Minister and candidate for Chancellor from the Green Party Robert Habeck said that cheap gas from Russia, rather than Germany's own strength was the basis of economic stability and development of the country's economy. For this reason, Germany is now in a deep structural crisis, he added.

Before that, on January 29, several hundred entrepreneurs in Germany gathered at the Brandenburg Gate in Berlin, opposing the economic policy of the country's authorities and the European Union. Izvestia footage from the scene shows demonstrators holding placards with the inscriptions "Nuclear power? Yes, please," "Let's save the economy while there is something to save," and "The German economy is in danger."

Western countries have increased sanctions pressure on Russia after the start of the special operation to protect civilians in Donbass, which was announced on February 24, 2022.