FILE - Former German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder attends a meeting of Russian President Vladimir Putin with chief executives of international companies at the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum in St. Petersburg, Russia, Friday, June 17, 2016. Local officials with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz’s party have met to consider calls to expel former Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder. The ex-leader's longstanding ties to the Russian energy sector and refusal to distance himself fully from President Vladimir Putin after Russia invaded Ukraine have left his political standing in tatters. (AP Photo/Dmitry Lovetsky, File)