Steinmeier calls Nord Stream 2 a private initiative

The German politician responded to the question regarding the threat of this project to European solidarity and security.

At the same time, Steinmeier said that in conversations with the Russian side the German government raises issues that concern, in particular, Poland and Ukraine.

"German Chancellor Angela Merkel raised the issue of Ukraine during a conversation with Russian President Vladimir Putin. The point is to dispel the fears of Poland and Ukraine that the Nord Stream 2 line will lead to the cessation of gas transit through Ukrainian territory. We need to find a solution that will help keep gas transit through Ukraine," the German president said.

Polish President Andrzej Duda, with whom Steinmeier met in Warsaw, said that the issue of Nord Stream 2 was a matter of energy security in Europe. He stressed that Warsaw paid for gas more than Germany due to the absence of full diversification of supplies.

"We are forced to buy gas from Russia, and Russia and Gazprom use this situation. We do not want this type of situation to be repeated in the future so we are implementing our gas projects that will bring gas security to us and our neighbors," Duda said.

At the same time, the U.S. presidential administration is preparing to impose sanctions on energy companies in Germany and a number of other European countries involved in the construction of the Nord Stream 2 pipeline.

Nord Stream 2 is a project on the construction of a gas pipeline from Russia to Germany, bypassing Ukraine across the Baltic Sea. Gazprom owns 51% of shares. Russia wants to build two lines of the gas pipeline (up to 55 billion cubic meters a year). Brussels and Berlin promise to guarantee the transit of gas through Ukraine even after the construction of the gas pipeline.

However, U.S. Special Representative for Ukraine Negotiations Kurt Volker believes that this project puts Ukraine in a much more vulnerable situation politically.

op