[rad-green] Nord Stream 2: Germany and Russia decry US sanctions

*Strange actions for a president who's in Russia's hip pocket....*


*https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-50879435
<https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-50879435>*


*BBC News          21 December 2019*

Nord Stream 2: Germany and Russia decry US sanctions


*Finance Minister Olaf Scholz said the sanctions were an infringement of
sovereignty. German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas has said the sanctions
amount to "interference in autonomous decisions taken in Europe".*

[image: image.png]
Gas wars: The problem with Nord Stream 2

Germany and Russia have reacted angrily to sanctions approved by US
President Donald Trump on a gas pipeline between the two countries.

The sanctions target firms building Nord Stream 2, an undersea pipeline
that will allow Russia to increase gas exports to Germany.

The US considers it a security risk.

But Germany accused Washington of interfering in its internal affairs,
while Russia and EU officials also criticised the sanctions.

Congress voted through the measures as part of a defence bill last week and
the legislation, which described the pipeline as a "tool of coercion", was
signed off by Mr Trump on Friday.
Why is the US against the pipeline?

The almost $11bn (£8.4bn) Nord Stream 2 project has infuriated the US, with
both Republican and Democratic lawmakers opposing it.

The Trump administration fears the pipeline will tighten Russia's grip over
Europe's energy supply and reduce its own share of the lucrative European
market for American liquefied natural gas.

President Trump has said the 1,225km (760-mile) pipeline, owned by Russia's
state-owned gas company, Gazprom, could turn Germany into a "hostage of
Russia".
How has Germany reacted?

Speaking on German TV, Finance Minister Olaf Scholz said the sanctions were
an infringement of sovereignty.

"It is up to the companies involved in the construction of the pipeline to
take the next decisions," he said.


[image: Pipes are laid for the Nord Stream 2 pipeline in the Baltic Sea, 13
September 2019]REUTERS The Nord Stream 2 pipeline in the Baltic Sea has
divided Europe and infuriated the US

German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas has said the sanctions amount to
"interference in autonomous decisions taken in Europe".
What about the EU and Russia?

The US sanctions have also angered Russia and the European Union, which
says it should be able to decide its own energy policies.

"As a matter of principle, the EU opposes the imposition of sanctions
against EU companies conducting legitimate business," a spokesman for the
trading bloc told AFP news agency on Saturday.

Russia's foreign ministry also strongly opposed the move, with ministry
spokeswoman Maria Zakharova accusing Washington of promoting an "ideology"
that hinders global competition.

The consortium behind Nord Stream 2 confirmed that it would build the
pipeline as soon as possible, despite the sanctions.

"Completing the project is essential for European supply security. We,
together with the companies supporting the project, will work on finishing
the pipeline as soon as possible," it said.

However, Allseas, a Swiss-Dutch company involved in the project, said it
had suspended its pipe-laying activities in anticipation of the sanctions.
Why is Nord Stream 2 so controversial?

For years EU member states have been concerned about the bloc's reliance on
Russian gas.

Russia currently supplies about 40% of the EU's gas supplies - just ahead
of Norway, which is not in the EU but takes part in its single market. The
new pipeline will increase the amount of gas going under the Baltic to 55
billion cubic metres per year.

Disagreements among EU nations were so strong that, earlier this year, they
even threatened to derail the project entirely
<https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-47170420>.


[image: Nord Stream pipelines from Russia][image: Presentational white
space]

The bloc eventually agreed to strengthen regulations against Nord Stream 2,
rather than stop it completely, and to bring it under European control.

Businesses in Germany, meanwhile, have invested heavily in the project.
Chancellor Merkel has tried to assure Central and Eastern European states
that the pipeline would not make Germany reliant on Russia for energy.

There is concern in other quarters, too. In May, climate activists opposing
the use of fossil fuels occupied part of the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline in
Germany.

The demonstrators, who said the project would be more detrimental to the
environment than the authorities had claimed, began skateboarding inside
the pipes.

Police said at least five people had occupied the pipes near Wrangelsburg
in northern Germany.

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