German newspaper Bild reported that German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier is said to have lost his temper with famous German writer Marko Martin because he criticized the President's role in the Nord Stream gas pipeline.
On November 8, Bild reported that the incident occurred after Marko Martin criticized veteran politician Frank-Walter Steinmeier for approving Nord Stream projects during his time as German Foreign Minister.
The Nord Stream 1 and Nord Stream 2 pipelines were built under the Baltic Sea to transport Russian gas directly to Germany. Both were destroyed by underwater explosions in September 2022.
Before the explosions, senior US officials, including President Joe Biden, had repeatedly criticized the project.
Bild quoted Martin as saying that he was invited to speak at an event at the Bellevue Palace in Berlin. Martin is said to have harshly criticized former senior and incumbent officials of the Social Democratic Party of Germany, including President Steinmeier.
Martin criticized them for pushing for closer ties with Russia before the Ukraine conflict escalated in February 2022, according to Bild.
Martin is said to have argued that the German government's involvement in Nord Stream may have encouraged Russian President Vladimir Putin to launch a military campaign against Ukraine.
Bild quoted witnesses as saying that President Steinmeier appeared very angry when he heard Martin's speech and had difficulty controlling his emotions.
Martin told Bild: "The president got angry and attacked me and accused me of defaming him." According to the article, President Steinmeier eventually lost his composure, accusing Martin and other intellectuals of not knowing how difficult the job of a statesman is.
The German presidential spokesman confirmed to Bild that the " Controversial" conversation had taken place, but said it was a "working-related conversation".
The Wall Street Journal, followed by several other US and German news outlets, claimed that a group of six Ukrainian divers on a small yacht had planted explosive devices that ruptured the Nord Stream pipeline.
Russia dismissed the above hypothesis as unreasonable. President Putin argued that the Nord Stream sabotage was carried out by professionals backed by "the full power of the state" and that the US "may" be behind the incident.
In September, Russia's SVR also criticized the US and UK, accusing them of "promoting information in the media that the attack was carried out solely by Ukrainian extremist groups".
