Sanctioned Chelsea boss Gerhard Schröder questions in Germany, sunflower oil rationing in Spain

In England, the Chelsea boss under sanctions. Roman Abramovich put his club up for sale last week to escape the penalties. “Abramovich has ties to Putin, who is staging a barbaric and diabolical attack on the Ukrainian people“Said Nadine Dorries, Minister for Sport, Culture and Media. The sale of the club has been stopped. Its commercial activities frozen. Unnecessary measures according to a Russian oligarch based in London”Imposing sanctions on us here creates enormous pressure on us. But we have no impact on the political decision“, says Mikhail Friedman.

But what is Gerhard Schröder playing at, one wonders in Germany? The former chancellor, friend of Vladimir Putin and chairman of the board of directors of Gazprom in Russia, is currently in Moscow. Sent as an emissary by the Ukrainians, according to the journalist who unveiled this initiative. “The Ukrainians were looking for someone close enough to Putin that they could trust him“, explains Matthew Karnitschnig, correspondent for the Politico media. For several days, the ruling SPD has been asking the former Chancellor to leave his post in Russia. For its part, the Chancellery refuses to comment on this solitary step.

Spain is worried about its dependence on Ukrainian sunflowers. No more than five liters per person. In Spanish stores, sunflower oil is already rationed. Spain imports 70% of its sunflower from Ukraine. French fries and canned food manufacturers fear the worst. “It’s such a serious problem that we expect to run out of sunflower oil in three weeks.“, explains one of them. Until now, Ukraine was the first sunflower producer in the world.