BERLIN — Since leaving office in 2005, Gerhard Schroeder has become a controversial figure in Germany with his ever-closer ties to Russia and President Vladimir Putin in particular. Now the former German chancellor is seeking to leverage those connections with an unauthorized peace mission, injecting a surprise twist into Germany’s response to the war in Ukraine.
After meeting Ukrainian delegates in Istanbul this week, Schroeder traveled on to Moscow to talk to the Russian leader, according to a report by Politico, which cited people familiar with Schroeder’s plan.
The move wasn’t coordinated with the German government, and Schroeder’s office in Berlin didn’t respond to requests for comment. But his wife, Soyeon Schroeder-Kim, appeared to provide a clue to his whereabouts after posting a picture of herself in a reflective pose on Instagram, dated March 10, with the Saint Basil’s Cathedral on Moscow’s Red Square in the background.
