Russian State Duma assesses legislative struggle in the US over 'Nord Stream 2'
The Chairman of the Russian State Duma Committee said that the US Congress's opposition to the Nord Stream 2 project is a challenge to the administration of US President Joe Biden.
On July 31, on his Telegram channel, Chairman of the State Duma Committee on International Affairs Leonid Slutsky expressed that the US Congress's opposition to the Nord Stream 2 project is unlikely to affect the pipeline's launch, but it is a challenge for the administration of US President Joe Biden.
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Previously, on July 30, the US House of Representatives passed a bill allocating funds for the State Department's activities in fiscal year 2022, including an amendment prohibiting the US government from refusing to impose sanctions on the Nord Stream 2 project.
According to Mr. Slutsky, "The White House will try to block the amendment, which is contrary to the agreement between Washington and Berlin on Nord Stream 2." Mr. Lutsky emphasized that, for President Biden, this is a serious challenge. The new US administration must really prove that, "the United States can comply with its commitments to European partners."
The Chairman of the Russian State Duma Committee on International Affairs, Slutsky, clarified that these sanctions are in favor of lobbyists for the supply of US liquefied natural gas to Europe, and are an example of unfair competition. However, according to him, all these “ceremonial dances” are unlikely to affect the launch of Nord Stream 2.
Earlier, the US and Germany reached an agreement on the Nord Stream 2 project on July 21. In particular, Washington admitted that sanctions would not stop its implementation, and Berlin pledged to find ways to extend the transit time of Russian gas through Ukraine. At the same time, US authorities reserved the right to act in case of “Russia using energy as a geopolitical weapon in Europe” and “aggression against Ukraine”.
Russia has repeatedly stated that it has never used energy resources as a tool of pressure.
The Nord Stream 2 project builds two gas pipelines from the Russian coast through the Baltic Sea to Germany. The transport capacity of each line is 27.5 billion m3per year. The new gas pipeline will double the capacity of the first Nord Stream./.
