US Senate Approved Defense Budget with Sanctions against Nord Stream 2

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The overwhelming majority of senators supported the defense budget which provides for sanctions expansion against Nord Stream 2. On Friday, December 11, the US Senate supported the defense budget for fiscal 2021. Among other things, the bill provides for sanctions expansion against the Russian Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline. The defense budget is $ 740.5 billion (about € 611 billion). The bill regulates financing the activities of the Ministry of Defense and programs in specialized areas, as well as an increase in salaries and pay by 3 percent. In addition, the document provides for new sanctions introduction against companies promoting the sale, lease or provision of pipe-laying vessels for the construction of the Nord Stream 2 and Turkish Stream gas pipelines. Trump threatened to veto the bill Now the project must go for signature to US President Donald Trump. Earlier, Trump has repeatedly threatened to veto the document. At first, he motivated his decision with a dispute on renaming American military bases and later on, with a demand to introduce provisions on the responsibility of social networks for user publications in the bill. However, the US Congress can overcome the veto if the bill is supported by more than two-thirds of the members of the Senate and House of Representatives. In this case, the document will enter into force without president’s signature. The overwhelming majority of Congressmen voted for the defense budget for 2021 in both houses of the US Congress. Their votes are enough to overcome the presidential veto.