Official: Germany tracks US discussion of N Stream-2 sanctions

BERLIN, Feb 5 (PRIME) -- The German Foreign Ministry is tracking possible new U.S. sanctions against Russia’s Nord Stream-2 gas pipeline, representative of the authority Christofer Burger said at a briefing on Wednesday.

“Of course, we are tracking the political discussion in the U.S. and in the Congress very carefully in the framework of our representation in Washington,” Burger said.

On Tuesday, German business newspaper Handelsblatt reported that the U.S. Congress might approve new sanctions against Nord Stream-2 if Russia tried to complete the construction.

“We have been reiterating all the time since the start of the discussion that we are in contact with the U.S. on a variety of levels in order to present our position there. It consists of the Nord Stream-2 being a project contributing to the energy security of Europe,” the official 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. Russian gas giant Gazprom builds the pipeline together with Germany’s Uniper and Wintershall DEA, Royal Dutch Shell, Austria’s OMV, and France’s Engie.

On December 21, the builder of the Nord Stream-2 suspended operations due to the threat of U.S. sanctions and withdrew all its vessels engaged in laying the pipeline from the Baltic Sea after U.S. President Donald Trump signed a defense budget envisaging spending on counteraction against Russia in various areas including sanctions against the Nord Stream-2.

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