MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 04th August, 2020) Russian-US energy cooperation is in interests of both countries, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Ryabkov said on Tuesday.
"Development of trade and investment ties as well as energy and technology cooperation serve our common interests," Ryabkov said during the interactive conference "USA - Latin America - Russia: an Agenda for Constructive Cooperation in the Post-COVID-19 Era."
Russia at the same time is "quite realistic" about bilateral cooperation prospects, given the election struggle in the United States, according to the diplomat.
"We will act pragmatically and respond to attacks on us when necessary. But we are open to interaction with Washington on a broad range of issues if it shows readiness to engage on a constructive and mutually respectful basis," he added.
The US, backed by Poland, Baltic nations and Ukraine, has been actively seeking to disrupt the Nord Stream 2 pipeline, which will carry Russian gas to Germany via the Baltic Sea. In July, the US Senate passed its version of the defense spending bill for the fiscal year 2021, which includes pipeline sanctions.
In December 2019, sanctions as part of the US' 2020 National Defense Authorization Act 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.
