Title: Germany: GDP and Economic Facts
Headings: Germany's Economy, Its Successes and Challenges
Germany's Economy, Its Successes and Challenges
Germany's Economic Growth Statistics
Type of Economy
Benefits From Eurozone Membership
German Chancellor Angela Merkel
How Germany Overcame Historic Struggles With Unemployment
Unique German-Russian Relations
Article Sources

Content: Merkel and Putin enjoyed a relatively cordial relationship. That was thanks to Putin’s fluency in German and Merkel’s schooling in then-Communist Eastern Germany, which gives her a good command of Russian. Merkel arrived just one week after Russia cut off gas supplies to Belarus, which carried the main pipeline to Europe. Merkel got assurances that Putin’s pipeline politics would not affect the EU's or Germany's energy supply. Russia does not want to jeopardize German foreign direct investment in Russia or bilateral trade. Putin also agreed to: A new EU-Russia Partnership and Cooperation Agreement. Acceleration of a gas pipeline construction to Germany under the Baltic Sea. Construction of an oil pipeline leading to Russia's Pacific Coast, to avoid going through “transit countries” Ukraine, Belarus, and Poland. Establishment of a gas reservoir in Germany, adding a new distribution center for Russian gas.