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US denies negotiations with Germany on fate of Nord Stream 2 - Axios

Earlier, the German government’s deputy government spokesperson, Ulrike Demmer said that the German government was exchanging views with partners, including the United States, on the construction of the gas pipeline

© EPA-EFE/CLEMENS BILAN

WASHINGTON, February 28. /TASS/. The United States authorities are not holding consultations with Germany with the aim of reaching an informal agreement that would allow the completion of the Nord Stream 2 project, the Axios portal reported on Saturday. American diplomats made this statement during a special telephone briefing for representatives of the US Congress.

According to the publication, Molly Montgomery, the Deputy Assistant Secretary in the Bureau of European and Eurasian Affairs, denied that the U.S. is negotiating with Germany on a potential side deal to allow the pipeline to proceed.

Earlier, the German government’s deputy government spokesperson, Ulrike Demmer said that the German government was exchanging views with partners, including the United States, on the construction of the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline.

During the briefing, representatives of the U.S. State Department stressed that the word "exchange" shouldn't be construed as a negotiation and that the Biden administration, in the course of normal diplomatic conversations, had registered its concerns about the pipeline with the Germans, the portal said.

Earlier, the Financial Times reported that Germany is working on a solution that should convince the administration of US President Joe Biden to drop sanctions on Nord Stream 2. According to the newspaper, German politicians, in particular, are considering the possibility of applying a mechanism that would allow Germany to independently block Nord Stream 2 if Russia, for example, puts pressure on Ukraine and arbitrarily reduces supplies through its gas transportation system.

The Nord Stream 2 project contemplates the construction of two pipeline strings with a total capacity of 55 bln cubic meters per year from the coast of Russia through the Baltic Sea to Germany. The construction was suspended in December 2019 after Allseas, a Swiss company laying the pipes for the Nord Stream 2 pipeline, suspended pipe-laying work over possible US sanctions and recalled its ships. Nord Stream 2 AG resumed pipe-laying work in December 2020.To date, about 95% of Nord Stream 2 has been finished.

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