The Kremlin's transcript of a speech by German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier on Crimea edited his text to replace the word “annexation.”



Western countries, including Germany, imposed economic sanctions on Russia after it annexed the Black Sea peninsula in March 2014.

In the first trip to Moscow by a German head of state since October 2010, President Frank-Walter Steinmeier said on Wednesday that ties between Russia and Germany were “far from normal.”



“There are still open wounds and unresolved issues, first and foremost when it comes to the annexation of Crimea and the conflict in eastern Ukraine, which are a burden and remain a burden on our relationship," he said.