The German economy is dependant on Russian gas, regardless of who is currently leading the country. Also take into account that until recently, Russia has been

The German economy is dependant on Russian gas, regardless of who is currently leading the country. Also take into account that until recently, Russia has been considered a reliable business partner in Germany, to the point that many Germans considered a russo-german partnership to be more advantageous than the current transatlantic one. While support for that idea waned in popularity a little after the Crimea takeover, some, now more on the political fringes, still do today.