WASHINGTON (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 26th April, 2019) Germany's Ambassador to the United States Emily Haber in a letter to US Congress voiced her support for the Nord Stream 2 pipeline project and warned that imposing additional sanctions on Russia could affect Europe's energy security.
"Any additional steps taken by the United States against the project would be counterproductive and undermine the European agreement reached on this difficult issue involving energy security policy," Haber said in the letter dated March 4 but published on Thursday. "We are concerned that Congress is currently considering imposing additional energy sanctions on Russia."
A congressional staffer said US lawmakers were shocked by Haber's letter, saying it "unambiguously sides with Russia," according to German media reports.
On March 11, US Energy Secretary Rick Perry said that United States' sanctions against Nord Stream 2 were "still on the table." In addition, US Deputy Energy Secretary Dan Brouillette said companies doing business with the Nord Stream 2 pipeline are at risk of sanctions.
The United States has expressed opposition to the Nord Stream 2 project on numerous occasions, claiming the pipeline was a means of political control by Russia to exert pressure on the European Union.
The Russian authorities have said the US attitude toward the Nord Stream 2 project could be explained by the desire to promote Washington's economic and energy interests in Europe and rejected the idea that the project might be political in nature.
Nord Stream 2 is a joint venture of the Russian energy giant Gazprom and five European companies. The pipeline is projected to deliver 55 billion cubic meters (1.9 trillion cubic feet) of Russian natural gas annually to the countries in the European Union.
