The United States' intention to create an alliance against the Nord Stream 2 project shows that its European allies are far from being unanimous in their attitude toward the pipeline, Waldemar Herdt, a member of the German parliament's committee on foreign affairs from the Alternative for Germany (AfD) party, told Sputnik
MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 22nd September, 2020) The United States' intention to create an alliance against the Nord Stream 2 project shows that its European allies are far from being unanimous in their attitude toward the pipeline, Waldemar Herdt, a member of the German parliament's committee on foreign affairs from the Alternative for Germany (AfD) party, told Sputnik.
In an interview with Germany's Bild on Monday, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said that his country is building a coalition to prevent the Russian-led project from being completed. The official also expressed a desire to see Germany adopt the US position on Nord Stream 2 either because of the situation around Russian opposition figure Alexey Navalny or the "real security implications" of dependence on Russian gas.
"The scenario that Mike Pompeo talks about was predictable. However, the very fact of the need to create a coalition indicates the existence of disagreements among European countries. It was initially expected that the EU countries will speak with a single voice in this matter. Pressure is most likely to develop further from the US," Herdt said.
Despite the pressure, Germany must maintain its sovereignty and balance cooperation with both Russia and the US, the lawmaker argued, noting that Berlin could use a number of diplomatic moves, "such as bargaining or trade agreements, to also accommodate America's economic interests."
As for Navalny's alleged poisoning, the politician is convinced that it would be "one of the pressure elements to stop the project."
Siegbert Droese, an AfD member of the Bundestag committee on EU affairs, in turn, said that the German government should "do much more" to make its stance on Nord Stream 2 clearer.
"Mrs. Merkel should say clearly that only Germany or German enterprises decide concerning their partners in trade and commerce and no other country. Navalny and Nord Stream 2 are two different topics. The Navalny case must be handled on Russian soil and not in Germany," Droese told Sputnik.
Commenting on Pompeo's remarks, the lawmaker described them as "a violation of diplomatic traditions" and "affront against Germany as a partner."
The US, backed by Poland, Baltic nations and Ukraine, has long been seeking to disrupt the pipeline that will carry Russian gas to Germany via the Baltic Sea. In December 2019, a threat of US sanctions forced Swiss pipelay company Allseas to quit the project with just 100 miles of the pipeline left to lay. Russia is now finishing the pipeline on its own.
