Merkel says Germany must keep talking to Russia

Germany will always have an interest in talking to Russia, Chancellor Angela Merkel said on Thursday, even though Moscow's move to ban German non-governmental organisations has dealt a big blow to ties. "I think that we should always have an interest in staying in talks with Russia," she said, adding, however, that Russia was not a more important partner than Ukraine or Poland.

EU member state Poland and Ukraine are fiercely opposed to the Nord Stream 2 project, now nearing completion, that will pump Russian gas to Germany.