Co-leader of Alternative for Germany (AfD)—the most popular party in Germany—Alice Weidel has demanded that Ukraine pay reparations to Germany over the destruction of the Nord Stream pipelines, escalating a political fight over German sovereignty, cheap energy, deindustrialization, and Berlin’s open-ended support for Kyiv.
Speaking at an AfD event on Tuesday, Weidel rejected Chancellor Friedrich Merz’s proposal to move Ukraine closer to the European Union through associate membership. She described Kyiv as a “bottomless pit” that has already drained enormous sums from German taxpayers.
“Germany has already transferred more than €100 billion to Ukraine over the past four years alone,” Weidel said.
Her remarks come as German investigators continue pursuing suspects in the September 2022 sabotage of Nord Stream 1 and Nord Stream 2—the Baltic Sea pipelines built to carry Russian natural gas directly to Germany.
The blasts destroyed three of the four pipeline strands at a depth of roughly 80 meters. Nord Stream 1 had long delivered large volumes of cheap Russian gas to Germany, while Nord Stream 2 had been completed but never activated because of political tensions over Ukraine.
The sabotage, as many Germans see it, was not merely an attack on infrastructure, but an attack on Germany’s industrial future, energy independence, working class, and ability to remain economically sovereign.
Weidel said Ukraine must explain its role before Berlin considers further concessions, aid, or EU privileges, framing the pipeline destruction as a direct assault on Germany’s most important energy lifeline.
“We need to know how this state-terrorist act against the most important infrastructure we had, namely the Nord Stream pipelines, came about and what role Ukraine played in it,” she said.
German investigators have reportedly attributed the explosions to a small group of Ukrainian operatives. The alleged ringleader was extradited to Germany from Italy last autumn.
Hellbound and Down 