SCHRÖDER, GERHARD FRITZ KURT

(1944– )

German politician. Gerhard Schröder served as Germany’s chancellor from 1998 to 2005. During that time, he developed a close personal relationship withVladimir Putin. Putin’s fluency in German and Schröder’s strident opposition to theUnited States–led invasion of Iraq in 2003 allowed the two to cement a mutually beneficial “strategic partnership.” Schröder and his wife’s adoption of two orphans from Putin’s hometown ofSt.Petersburgcreated further bonds of comradeship between the two world leaders. Schröder was criticized at home for extolling Putin’s “flawless” commitment todemocracy, as well as for his willingness to sacrifice his nation’s energy security and the economic stability ofPolandand theBaltic Statesto secure directnatural gaspipelines from Russia to Germany, notably Gazprom’s Nord Stream project. After he stepped down from power, he accepted the position of chairman of the board at Nord Stream AG, a consortium of investors backing the controversial pipeline. Since leaving office, he has criticized the recognition ofKosovoand blamedMikheil Saakashvilifor theSouth Ossetian War, positions that are quite popular in Russian political circles.

See alsoEuropean Union; Foreign relations; Middle East.