Germany’s Scholz asks ex-chancellor to cut Russian biz ties

BERLIN (AP) — German Chancellor Olaf Scholz has asked former Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder to resign from his posts at Russian state-owned companies. Schroeder is a longtime friend of Russian President Vladimir Putin — a relationship that has led to much criticism in Germany, especially since Russia invaded Ukraine. Schroeder is chairman of the supervisory board of the Russian state energy company Rosneft and also holds leading positions in the controversial Nord Stream 1 and Nord Stream 2 pipeline projects. He is also slated to take on a board post for Gazprom, the Russian state-owned gas giant. Scholz said Thursday that Schroeder should “withdraw from these posts.” He said Schroeder’s ties to Russian companies were not a private matter since he is a former chancellor.