German Chancellor Olaf Scholz has rejected the European Parliament's demand for sanctions against Gerhard Schröder for his refusal to step down from senior positions in Russian energy companies.

Scholz said the German parliament's decision this week to strip Schröder of his taxpayer-paid office space in Berlin was consistent and correct and will therefore be implemented. But Scholz noted that the former chancellor should not be punished further.

Schröder is a member of the board of directors of the Russian state oil company Rosneft, and in February he was also nominated to the board of directors of the Russian energy company Gazprom.

Shortly after the start of the war in Ukraine, Schröder's office staff in Berlin resigned in protest at his refusal to step down from these positions. Although the ex-chancellor may now lose his office space, he still receives a monthly allowance of 8,300 euros.