Former German Chancellor, Angela Merkel, has defended her record when it comes to handling Vladimir Putin

Merkel says she has no reason to apologise for her response to Russia’s annexation of Crimea from Ukraine back in 20-14, during her first public interview since leaving office.

Throughout her time as chancellor, she publicly opposed Ukraine joining NATO. This was during a period when Ukraine was plagued with corruption and other instabilities.

The Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline was also discussed in the interview, particularly referring to Germany’s reliance on Russia’s natural resources.

Merkel has previously been accused of leaving her nation vulnerable, by engaging in close business dealings with Russia.

The Nord Stream 2 was built during her time as leader and later suspended by current Chancellor, Olaf Scholz when the European war began.

However, Germany is struggling to reduce its dependence on Russian energy sources, without inflicting economic harm on itself.

When it comes to European tensions, Merkel says Russia and the European Union are neighbours that cannot ignore each other and must co-exist.