Despite considerable differences between Gerhard Schröder and the current party leadership and the federal government in Berlin, official Germany congratulated the former SPD chancellor on his 80th birthday today.
The office of German Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD) said: “The Chancellor congratulates the former Chancellor. D. happy birthday as usual in the form of a congratulatory letter.” According to a party spokesman, the SPD leaders Saskia Esken and Lars Klingbeil also congratulated “in writing”.
Schröder was born on April 7, 1944 in Mossenberg in the Lippe district of North Rhine-Westphalia, was Chancellor of Germany from 1998 to 2005 and chairman of the SPD from 1999 to 2004.
Almost expelled because of proximity to Putin
Because he did not break off his friendship with Russian President Vladimir Putin after Russia’s attack on Ukraine and continued to work as a lobbyist for the Russian energy industry, the party leadership broke with him. However, a party expulsion procedure against him filed by several SPD branches failed last year.
Schröder recently sharply attacked the current SPD leadership. In an interview in mid-March, he described the party leadership as “people I can only take politically seriously to a limited extent.” Later he followed up again. “What really saddens me is the provincialism of the current leaders,” he said, adding, referring to the poll numbers: “If I had been at 15 percent, I would have resigned immediately.”