Berlin Plans to Dissuade the US from Sanctions against Nord Stream-2

Germany still hopes that Washington will abandon the idea of ​​tougher sanctions against the project participants. The German authorities are planning to negotiate with the United States on sanctions against Nord Stream-2, German Minister for Economic Affairs and Energy Peter Altmaier said in an interview with DPA. “We still hope that these sanctions won’t be imposed. We are ready for negotiations at any time to prevent escalation,” the minister said. Altmaier insists that there are no reasons for Washington to take restrictive measures against the project participants: gas transit through Ukraine is ensured, and terminals for receiving LNG from the United States are being built in northern Germany in order to diversify fuel supplies. “For the rest, I hope and expect that all parties will adhere to the norms of international law,” the representative of the German government stressed. As you know, the State Department has included Nord Stream 2 and the Turkish Stream in the list of projects that are subject to the sanctions of the US Law on Countering America’s Adversaries Through Sanctions (CAATSA). These sanctions were included in the US defense budget plan for the next fiscal year, which begins on October 1. The document provides for the introduction of sanctions against foreign persons and companies that facilitate the lease, sale and provision of ships involved in the gas pipelines construction.