According to US media reports on July 21, the United States and Germany have reached an agreement to allow the completion of the construction of the “Beixi No. 2” natural gas pipeline project. The two countries are expected to announce the agreement as early as Wednesday local time.
According to sources, the new agreement will not only meet Germany’s need to transport natural gas from Russia through the “North Stream 2” project, but also ensure that Ukraine is not excluded from the process of Russia’s energy transportation to the west. In addition, the agreement will also ensure that the United States will not resume sanctions on Nord Stream 2 AG, the operating company of “North Stream 2”.
White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki said on Tuesday that the US government still opposes the “North Stream 2” project. She also said that when Biden met with German Chancellor Merkel on the 15th, he expressed concern about the “Beixi-2” project “weakening the energy security of Europe and the energy security of Ukraine and the eastern NATO countries.”
According to sources, Germany has agreed to provide 1 billion U.S. dollars to help Ukraine develop clean energy and improve its energy security level.
It is reported that the “Beixi No. 2” natural gas pipeline project officially started in 2015, with a total length of 1,224 kilometers. The “North Stream 2” project aims to lay a natural gas pipeline from Russia to Germany through the Baltic Sea bottom, which can bypass Ukraine and transport Russian natural gas to Germany and other European countries. After completion, the total amount of natural gas sent from Russia to Germany will be doubled.
At the end of 2019, the U.S. government requested the suspension of the construction of the “Beixi No. 2” project, otherwise it would impose sanctions on the companies involved in the construction. At that time, the Swiss and Dutch companies involved in the construction of the pipeline project were forced to suspend construction. The U.S. government added sanctions on the “Beixi No. 2” to the National Defense Authorization Act passed in 2019 and 2020 in the following year. On May 25 this year, US President Biden stated that he decided to stop sanctions on the “North Stream 2” project because the project is nearing completion and imposing sanctions may harm the relationship between the United States and Europe. Matthias Warnich, general manager of the “North Stream 2” joint-stock company, stated on July 11 that the project has been 98% completed.
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