Pipeline project Nord Stream 2 divides Berlin and Brussels

A recent decision by the Danish parliament allowing a ban on construction of the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline between Germany and Russia on Danish maritime territory in the Baltic Sea highlights divisions between Berlin and other European states over the controversial project, Daniel Brössler and Alexander Mühlauer write for the Süddeutsche Zeitung. The move by the Danish parliament, which could lead to a deviation of the pipeline’s course, “is not the biggest problem” for Nord Stream 2, the authors say. Several eastern European countries that fear the pipeline will bypass them as transit countries, as well as the United States, have repeatedly criticised the project. German foreign minister Sigmar Gabriel told Russian business partners in St. Petersburg the German government would seek to ensure the project is implemented, despite objections from other EU member states and the European Commission. Gabriel said Russian gas company Gazprom and other companies involved in Nord Stream 2 needed “legal security”, Brössler  and Mühlauer report.

Read the article in German here.

Read other CLEW news digest items about developments on the issue here. For background, read the CLEW dossier The Energiewende and its implications for international security and the CLEW factsheet Germany’s dependence on imported fossil fuels.