Minister says Berlin sees Nord Stream-2 as commercial project

MOSCOW, May 10 (PRIME) -- Berlin still sees the Nord Stream-2 gas pipeline project as commercial and supports it, Foreign Minister Heiko Maas said on Thursday after a meeting with his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov.

“Is Nord Stream a private commercial project and does the federal government still sticks to this opinion? I can answer Yes to this question,” Maas said.

The Nord Stream-2 project envisages construction of two lines of a natural gas pipeline with an annual capacity of up to 55 billion cubic meters, running from the Russian shore to Germany under the Baltic Sea. Gazprom will implement the project together with its European partners – Shell, OMV, Engie, Uniper, and Wintershall.

Heads of the parliaments of Lithuania, Latvia and Poland earlier signed a joint statement against construction of the pipeline, saying that it is a political project based on Moscow’s decision to stop gas transit across Ukraine. According to media reports, Ukraine and Moldova joined the statement.

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