Biden will renounce the sanctions of the Trump era to the Russian pipeline operator

The U.S. will step down from the company responsible for the Nord Stream 2 natural gas pipeline, a machine change that removes the key bone of the debate between Washington and Berlin, Biden administration officials said.

“I have determined that it is in the national interest of the United States to refuse to apply sanctions,” U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken, Nord Stream 2 AG, the company overseeing the project and its CEO Matthias Warnig and the company’s chief executive officer, said Wednesday.

Heiko Maas, the German foreign minister, hailed the “constructive step” as the US “takes into account the truly excellent relations we have established with the Biden administration”.

Nord Stream 2 will carry Russian gas directly across the Baltic Sea, surrounding Ukraine. Warnig, a former officer in the East German Stasi intelligence service, is a close ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin.

The U.S. State Department sent a regular 90-day report to Congress listing the entities involved in the pipeline that will be sanctioned. The list included Russian ships laying pipelines, but the company stopped overseeing the works.

Maas said the refusal showed the U.S. “taking a step in us”. “Germany is an important partner in the United States and is a statement of what it can count on in the future.”

Nord Stream 2 “was the only issue [Germany and the US] they have fundamental differences ”, and it was hoped that the project in the two countries would not strengthen the truly excellent cooperation [between us] no way, ”he added.

U.S. President Joe Biden has repeatedly criticized Nord Stream 2, saying it is a “bad deal for Europe.” The U.S. says the pipeline will remove profitable gas transportation rates from Kyiv and make Kremlin pressure much more vulnerable. U.S. officials also argue that Europe will increase its dependence on Russian energy imports.

“Our stance against the Nord Stream 2 pipeline is ongoing,” Blinken said, despite his refusal.

On Wednesday, a senior State Department official said “stop this [project] it’s always been a long shot. ”

“The actions we have taken today have shown that we continue to oppose the pipeline project, but we are aware of the President’s commitment to rebuilding relations with European allies and partners,” the official added.

Blinken spoke with Maas on Tuesday, and a spokesman for the state department said that “the United States has stressed its commitment to allying Russia’s efforts to harm our collective security with allies and partners.” “In this regard, [he] The US has stressed that it has opposed the Nord Stream 2 pipeline, ”the spokesman said.

The decision to waive the sanctions shows that Washington is not in danger of having a detrimental dispute over the project with one of its closest allies. Germany supports the pipeline, says it is a crucial pillar of its energy security, and has condemned foreign sanctions against the U.S. project, calling it unfair interference in its internal affairs.

The news of the exception was received sadly on Capitol Hill, where opposition to Nord Stream 2 is one of the only issues that Democrats and Republicans have in common.

Democrat chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Bob Menendez, has released a statement opposing the Biden administration’s decision to suspend sanctions and failing to see how the decision would move the U.S. toward efforts to counter Russian attacks in Europe.

Republican Rep. Michael McCaul said the refusal will show that the U.S. government never intended to stop the project. “If Putin’s regime allows this pipeline to end, it will be because the Biden administration has decided to do so,” he said.

“Two months ago, President Biden called Putin a ‘killer’, but today he intends to give Putin, his regime and his friends great strategic strength in Europe,” said Nebraska Republican Senator Ben Sasse.

The waiver will be for the next 90 days. But Germany is confident that this will give the two countries time to overcome their differences from Nord Stream 2.

Maas said the U.S. and Germany should now use the time left for the next 90-day report to discuss “particularly problematic aspects of the project,” especially the “way in which Ukraine has been threatened.”

“We have three months now. . . We talk about how we can move forward with Washington officials and how our two governments can reconcile the different positions on Washington and Berlin on this issue, ”he said.