Former German Chancellor Angela Merkel has defended the gas deals she made with Russia saying they helped German firms and kept the peace with Moscow, revealing the strategy in her memoir Freedom, released in 30 languages on Tuesday.

Merkel’s spirited defence of her actions and central role in European geopolitics were clearly made to challenge those who accused of having been too soft on Russia, leaving Germany dangerously reliant on cheap Russian gas, and sparking turmoil with her much-maligned open door migrant policy from 2015 onwards.