Page 6 - NorthAmOil Week 21 2021

NorthAmOil COMMENTARY NorthAmOil

Biden opts against further

Nord Stream 2 pressure

The US has opposed Nord Stream 2 since its inception in 2015, but

relations with Germany are now the priority

US-GERMANY THE US has confirmed it will not impose
sanctions on the Russian company develop-
WHAT: ing the Nord Stream 2 pipeline – a decision
Biden’s administration that has been welcomed by both Germany
has opted against piling and Russia.
more pressure on the The government of US President Joe Biden
Nord Stream 2 project. has instead said it will instead maintain its sanc-
tions on the Russian pipelaying vessels that are
WHY: building the pipeline, which is now more than
The US is eager to mend 95% complete. While Washington has stressed
ties with Germany, an that it remains opposed to Nord Stream 2, the
ardent supporter of the move to waive further sanctions is a recognition
pipeline. that continued efforts to thwart the project are
futile. The Biden administration’s priority now is
WHAT NEXT: improving relations with Berlin, an ardent sup-
Biden and Putin are due porter of Nord Stream 2.
to hold a summit this The president might also want to remove a
summer. major point of contention between the US and
Russia ahead of a proposed face-to-face meet-
ing with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin
this summer, in the hope that progress can be
made on other fronts, such as Ukraine and
cyber-security. The US and other Western pow- US President Joe
ers have signalled their alarm at the build-up A difficult birth Biden’s priority now is
in Russian military forces near the border with The US has opposed Nord Stream 2 since its improving relations with
Ukraine in recent months. conception in 2015. It has argued that the pro- Germany.
US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken ject, which will pump up to 55bn cubic metres
stressed on May 19 that the US government per year of Siberian gas to north Germany, will
remained nevertheless opposed to Nord Stream jeopardise European energy security, and strip
2, arguing that it undermines European energy Ukraine of billions of dollars of revenues from
security. transiting Russian supplies. But Moscow has said
“Our opposition to the Nord Stream 2 pipe- that Washington is simply acting in the interests
line is unwavering,” Blinken said. “Though we of US LNG suppliers, which could lose market
may not always agree, our alliances remain share if Nord Stream 2 is completed.
strong, and our position is in line with our com- In reality, US opposition to the pipeline
mitment to strengthen our transatlantic rela- is likely grounded in concerns that it would
tionships as a matter of national security.” strengthen economic ties between Russia and
German Chancellor Angela Merkel mean- the EU’s de-facto leader Germany.
while welcomed the move. The project is also opposed by a number of
“Of course President Biden has moved a bit EU members in Eastern Europe – countries that
into our direction in the context of the Nord were in Moscow’s orbit during the Soviet era but
Stream 2 conflict,” she told public broadcaster now are eager to sever political and economic
WDR on May 20, while stressing there was ties with Russia.
still some disagreement between the two Nord Stream 2 has had a difficult birth. Gaz-
nations. prom reached an agreement to build the pipeline
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov mean- in 2015 with European partners Royal Dutch
while described the US decision as “definitely a Shell, E.ON, OMV, Wintershall and ENGIE.
positive signal.” Despite objections from some EU governments

P6 www. NEWSBASE .com Week 21 27•May•2021