German ex-chancellor loses staff in dispute over Ukraine

Former German chancellor Gerhard Schröder is losing his long-time office manager as well as three other employees due to differences over the Ukraine conflict, reported dpa, quoting two German media reports.

After more than 20 years, his office manager and speech-writer Albrecht Funk is turning his back on his boss, the Pioneer news portal and the Hannoversche Allgemeine Zeitung newspaper reported on Tuesday.

The Social Democrat's office has not commented on the reports, which, if true, would mean his office is entirely devoid of staff.

There were allegedly differences between Funk and Schröder over the Russian attack on Ukraine, according to the Pioneer.

Funk is said to have recommended to his boss a quick and clear move to distance himself from Russian President Vladimir Putin as well as a resignation from all supervisory board positions in Russian companies.

The former chancellor is considered a long-time friend of Putin. Furthermore, Schröder is head of the supervisory board of the Russian state energy company Rosneft and also holds leading positions in the Nord Stream 2 pipeline project, which has since effectively been cancelled by the current German Chancellor Olaf Scholz. Scholz is the first Social Democrat chancellor since Schröder.

On Thursday, as the Russian invasion began, Schröder called on the government in Moscow via a LinkedIn message to end the war in Ukraine as quickly as possible.

Schröder is also stopping his regular podcast, according to the Bild tabloid. At the end of January, Schröder had accused Kiev in the podcast of "sabre-rattling," a statement which was met with great indignation in Ukraine.

Last year, €407,000 was paid out of German state coffers for personnel expenses in Schröder's office.