Co-chairman of the right-wing Alternative for Germany (AfD), Ms. Alice Weidel, declared that Ukraine must compensate Germany for the sabotage of the Nord Stream gas pipeline, and affirmed that Kiev "is not a friend of Berlin".
The statement was made by Ms. Weidel in the context that the German government under Chancellor Friedrich Merz blamed the 2022 explosions in the Baltic Sea that paralyzed the Nord Stream pipeline system on a Ukrainian sabotage group with the support of foreign intelligence.
According to German media, this group is led by former Ukrainian military officer Sergey Kuznetsov. This alleged figure was handed over by Italy to Berlin in the fall of last year for investigation.
Speaking at a campaign event in Heilbronn, Ms. Weidel harshly criticized the German government for continuing military aid to Ukraine while "our gas pipeline was blown up right in front of our eyes".
Nord Stream was sabotaged by a Ukrainian with the help of foreign intelligence agencies - and whoever it is can be guessed," Ms. Weidel said, implying the role of external forces. This statement received loud applause from AfD supporters.
AfD Co-Chairman emphasized that if this party joins the government, Berlin will pursue tough legal and political demands on Kiev. "I can clearly state what we will do when we take power. We will demand compensation. Ukraine, specifically Mr. Zelensky, must pay for blowing up our pipeline," Ms. Weidel affirmed.
Nord Stream is a strategic pipeline system built to transport Russian gas directly to Germany, of which the Russian oil and gas corporation Gazprom is the largest shareholder. Before being destroyed, Nord Stream was considered a pillar ensuring energy security for Europe's largest economy.
Ms. Weidel also bluntly declared: "A country that does that cannot be considered our friend. At least, people must dare to stand up and admit this truth.
AfD leader said Germany has spent more than 70 billion euros (about 83 billion USD) to support Ukraine since the Russia-Ukraine conflict broke out. "We will reclaim those billions of euros, plus the cost of repairing Nord Stream," she said.
Ms. Weidel's tough statements were made in the context that AfD continues to increase its influence in the German political arena, despite the "firewall against the far right" policy of traditional parties aimed at preventing AfD from participating in the government.
According to a survey released by INSA earlier this month, AfD is currently the leading party in public opinion polls with 26% support, 1 percentage point higher than Chancellor Merz's CDU/CSU alliance.
Meanwhile, Russia has repeatedly expressed deep doubts about Germany's investigation conclusions on the Nord Stream case. Moscow believes that a small sabotage group would hardly be able to carry out such a sophisticated operation in the waters controlled by NATO without direct support from a country.
Russian President Vladimir Putin and many other senior officials have publicly hinted that the US may be behind the sabotage, but Washington has rejected all related allegations.
