In the German Bundestag, a debate was held on the sentencing of the Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny, at which the deputies from the Green and Free Democratic parties demanded to freeze the construction of the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline as sanctions against the Russian authorities.

This is reported by the ZDF.de edition.

Green MP Oliver Crusher criticized the federal government for being a private economic project for Nord Stream 2: “When it comes to economic interests, don’t politics and human rights play anymore?”

And the deputy of the FDP faction Alexander Graf Lambsdorf called friendly relations with Russia “currently impossible.”

“Russia has gone out of the way of democracy,” Lambsdorf said and called for a halt to the construction of Nord Stream 2. “We are indebted to the democrats who take to the streets at -28.”

In response, German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas said that the sanctions should not cause indirect damage to German companies, and called on to think about possible geostrategic consequences. According to the diplomat, Russia’s economic isolation will only lead to its being in China’s arms.

“And I don’t think this should be the West’s strategy in this dispute. They are creating the largest economic and military alliance available. This is not only wrong but also dangerous,” Maas said.

The Foreign Minister said that he was against destroying all bridges in relations with Russia, and added that one of the arguments in favor of keeping the Russian Federation in the Council of Europe is that Russians have the opportunity to appeal to the European Court of Human Rights.