Gerhard Schröder
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Schröder joins Putin for 74th birthday in Moscow, prompting German political backlash
Former German Chancellor Gerhard Schröder travelled to Moscow on 7 October for business related to the German supermarket chain Globus and was invited by Vladimir Putin to celebrate his 74th birthday at the Kremlin leader's residence. The meeting, documented in photos published on Kremlin-affiliated channels, drew sharp criticism from German politicians across the Greens, FDP and CDU, while a member of Schröder's own SPD defended the trip as potentially useful for ceasefire efforts.