Berlin:
Germany on Tuesday put the controversial Nord Stream 2 pipeline on hold in response to Moscow’s recognition of two breakaway regions in eastern Ukraine, finally halting the 10-billion-euro project that had long annoyed allies.
Over the years, Berlin had tenaciously pursued the pipeline that would double its natural gas import capacity from Russia, despite opposition from the United States and Eastern Europe, who feared the continent would become too dependent on Russian energy.
Controversies that had weighed on German-Russian ties — from the poisoning of Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny to several spy scandals to a series of cyber-attacks — had pushed the German government on with the project, which was finally completed last year and awaiting regulation. approval.
But hours after Putin’s decision on recognizing separatists in eastern Ukraine, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said on Tuesday he had asked for the approval process to be halted, despite a severe energy crisis that pushed gas prices in Europe.
“That sounds technical, but it’s the necessary administrative step, so there can’t be certification of the pipeline and without this certification Nord Stream 2 can’t start working,” he said.
The White House immediately applauded the decision, while Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba called it “a morally, politically and practically correct step in the current circumstances”.
Meanwhile, Dmitry Medvedev, vice president of the Russian Security Council, said Germany is simply shooting itself in the foot.
“German Chancellor Olaf Scholz has asked for Nord Stream 2’s certification to be suspended…well, welcome to the new world where Europeans will soon pay 2,000 euros for 1,000 cm3 of gas,” he tweeted.
Rising tensions
Germany’s ambivalent attitude towards Nord Stream 2 had long been a source of friction with allies.
Even as Russia gathered more than 100,000 troops on Ukraine’s borders, Scholz refused to pronounce the pipeline’s name when asked about possible sanctions against Russia.
The involvement of former Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder as chairman of Nord Stream AG’s shareholders’ committee has also become a source of embarrassment for Germany as the West faces Russia in its worst crisis since the Cold War.
The mixed coverage of the gas pipeline had left NATO partners, including the United States, questioning whether Germany was on board as the West tried to fend off what it perceived as an expansionist Russia.
As doubts swirled, German ministers were forced to repeat repeatedly that they would indeed pull the plug on the pipeline if Russia marched into Ukraine.
Kiev, in conflict with Russia since Moscow’s 2014 annexation of Crimea, has long been a critic of Nord Stream 2.
The pipeline bypasses Ukraine’s own infrastructure, depriving the country about a billion euros annually in gas transit fees and, Kiev fears, removes a key check on potential Russian aggression.
President Volodymyr Zelensky has insisted that Nord Stream 2 poses a serious global security threat.
“We are viewing this project solely through the prism of security and consider it a dangerous geopolitical weapon of the Kremlin,” he said last year.
Running from Russia’s Baltic coast to northeastern Germany, the 1,200-kilometer (745-mile) underwater Nord Stream 2 follows the same route as Nord Stream 1, completed more than a decade ago.
Like its twin brother, Nord Stream 2 could feed 55 billion cubic meters of gas per year from Russia to Europe, increasing the continent’s access to relatively cheap natural gas at a time of declining domestic production.
Russian giant Gazprom has a majority stake in the 10 billion euros ($12 billion) project. The German Uniper and Wintershall, the French Engie, the Anglo-Dutch Shell and the Austrian OMV are also involved.
Europe’s top economy imports about 55 percent of its gas from Russia — up 40 percent in 2012 — and believes the pipeline could play a role in the transition from coal to nuclear power.
But it will now need to accelerate its build-up of other energy sources — including importing LNG from elsewhere — to meet its energy needs.
Vice Chancellor and Energy Minister Robert Habeck admitted on Tuesday that there will be “energy policy, geopolitics and strategy implications” for Germany.
“We won’t soon forget this winter,” Habeck said.
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