Berlin says politics irrelevant to Nord Stream-2 certification

BERLIN, Dec 17 (PRIME) -- Certification of Russia’s Nord Stream2 pipeline is based on administrative and legal criteria, not on the political issues, spokeswoman for the German Energy Ministry Susanne Ungrad said at a briefing on Friday.

“Federal Chancellor Olaf Scholz answered the question in Brussels yesterday, making it clear that this is an administrative and legal matter, that it is conducted in accordance with the law and legislation, that there is no political influence,” Ungrad said.

According to Ungrad, the “tensions” in relations with Russia, in particular the situation around Ukraine and the verdict in the murder case of Georgian citizen Zelimkhan Khangoshvili, allegedly assassinated by the Russian intelligence, have nothing to do with certification.

At the same time, Ungrad said that the launch of the pipeline is linked to completion of its certification.

“Gas can be pumped through the pipeline only when the certification process by the Federal Network Agency (BNA) is complete. This is a clear legal prerequisite,” Ungrad said.

BNA head Jochen Homan has said he did not expect certification to be completed in the first half of next year.

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