Matthias Warnig
Encyclopedia
Matthias Warnig is a former member of the Stasi
and currently the Managing Director (CEO) of the Nord Stream AG
, a company for construction and operation of the Nord Stream submarine gas pipeline from Russia
to Germany
.
In 1971 Warnig started his career at the Stasi
, the secret police of communist East Germany.
Warnig allegedly worked with KGB
agent Vladimir Putin
. The two men collaborated on recruiting West German citizens for the KGB. These allusions were denied by Matthias Warning saying that he met Vladimir Putin for the first time in his life in 1991, when Putin was the head of the Committee for External Relations
of the Saint Petersburg Mayor's Office.
Warnig had apparently spied on Dresdner Bank
AG in West Germany before he began to work in the bank.
Dresdner Bank attempted to get a banking operating license in Saint Petersburg
, where Vladimir Putin was now in charge of foreign economic relations. Warnig took part in negotiations. The office was opened in 1991. Warnig became Chairman of the Board of Directors of Dresdner Bank ZAO, Dresdner Bank Russian subsidiary. In 2004-05, the bank advised on the controversial forced sale of Yukos
assets.
Stasi
The Ministry for State Security The Ministry for State Security The Ministry for State Security (German: Ministerium für Staatssicherheit (MfS), commonly known as the Stasi (abbreviation , literally State Security), was the official state security service of East Germany. The MfS was headquartered...
and currently the Managing Director (CEO) of the Nord Stream AG
Nord Stream AG
Nord Stream AG is a consortium for construction and operation of the planned Nord Stream submarine pipeline between Vyborg in Russia and Greifswald in Germany, a project initially promoted by Chancellor Gerhard Schröder and President Vladimir Putin. The consortium was incorporated in Zug,...
, a company for construction and operation of the Nord Stream submarine gas pipeline from Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
to Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
.
In 1971 Warnig started his career at the Stasi
Stasi
The Ministry for State Security The Ministry for State Security The Ministry for State Security (German: Ministerium für Staatssicherheit (MfS), commonly known as the Stasi (abbreviation , literally State Security), was the official state security service of East Germany. The MfS was headquartered...
, the secret police of communist East Germany.
Warnig allegedly worked with KGB
KGB
The KGB was the commonly used acronym for the . It was the national security agency of the Soviet Union from 1954 until 1991, and was the premier internal security, intelligence, and secret police organization during that time.The State Security Agency of the Republic of Belarus currently uses the...
agent Vladimir Putin
Vladimir Putin
Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin served as the second President of the Russian Federation and is the current Prime Minister of Russia, as well as chairman of United Russia and Chairman of the Council of Ministers of the Union of Russia and Belarus. He became acting President on 31 December 1999, when...
. The two men collaborated on recruiting West German citizens for the KGB. These allusions were denied by Matthias Warning saying that he met Vladimir Putin for the first time in his life in 1991, when Putin was the head of the Committee for External Relations
of the Saint Petersburg Mayor's Office.
Warnig had apparently spied on Dresdner Bank
Dresdner Bank
Dresdner Bank AG was one of Germany's largest banking corporations and was based in Frankfurt. It was acquired by competitor Commerzbank in December 2009.- 19th century :...
AG in West Germany before he began to work in the bank.
Dresdner Bank attempted to get a banking operating license in Saint Petersburg
Saint Petersburg
Saint Petersburg is a city and a federal subject of Russia located on the Neva River at the head of the Gulf of Finland on the Baltic Sea...
, where Vladimir Putin was now in charge of foreign economic relations. Warnig took part in negotiations. The office was opened in 1991. Warnig became Chairman of the Board of Directors of Dresdner Bank ZAO, Dresdner Bank Russian subsidiary. In 2004-05, the bank advised on the controversial forced sale of Yukos
YUKOS
OJSC "Yukos Oil Company" was a petroleum company in Russia which, until 2003, was controlled by Russian oligarch Mikhail Khodorkovsky and a number of other prominent Russian businessmen. After Yukos was bankrupted, Khodorkovsky was convicted and sent to prison.Yukos headquarters was located in...
assets.
External links
- Nord Stream, Matthias Warnig (codename "Arthur") and the Gazprom Lobby Eurasia Daily Monitor Volume: 6 Issue: 114
- Matthias Warnig: "What is good for Russia is good for Germany” by Irina Reznik, The Vedomosti 11 October 2006 (translation at the website of Nord Stream AG, includes biography of Matthias Warnig)
See also
- Gerhard SchröderGerhard SchröderGerhard Fritz Kurt Schröder is a German politician, and was Chancellor of Germany from 1998 to 2005. A member of the Social Democratic Party of Germany , he led a coalition government of the SPD and the Greens. Before becoming a full-time politician, he was a lawyer, and before becoming Chancellor...
- Nord Stream