Green party leader Annalena Baerbock called for a move away from the Nord Stream 2 pipeline project in the face of the confrontation between Russia and Ukraine. „The federal government must turn its back on Nord Stream 2. At the latest, the actions of Russia in the Sea of Azov should show this to everyone and everyone,“ she said.
Nord Stream 2 is to transport gas directly from Russia via the Baltic Sea to Germany and is borne by private companies. Since the completion of the previous project in 2011, the Russian group Gazprom has been supplying natural gas directly to Germany and Central Europe. The first two strands of the Baltic Sea pipeline can produce up to 55 billion cubic meters of natural gas per year. Nord Stream 2 is to double the capacity of the Baltic Sea pipeline. The US, but also some European countries, criticize the project sharply. (Read here in detail what the gas battle is about.)
Also candidates for CDU chairmanship express criticism
Also, the three candidates for the post of CDU chairman expressed critical of Nord Stream 2: So said CDU General Secretary Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer on the ARD program „Anne Will“, Putin fired with the Russian action in the street of Kerch the Debate in Europe on the pipeline project. The question was where to intervene in the current proceedings or to limit the quantity of gas passed through.
The acting Minister of Health and candidates for the CDU chairmanship Jens Spahn did not rule out in the „Bild“ talk an exit from the gas pipeline project. „It can not be that the project – no matter what Putin does – goes on and on.“
In view of the escalation between Russia and Ukraine, candidate Friedrich Merz questioned the construction of the gas pipeline last week. „The more the conflict escalates, the more the question comes to the fore: Is it really right that we build this pipeline?“ Merz said at the CDU regional conference in Berlin.
Maas rejects criticism
In contrast, Foreign Minister Heiko Maas (SPD) again rejected the continued criticism of the construction of the gas pipeline. Russian President Vladimir Putin promised Chancellor Angela Merkel in August that gas transport through Ukraine would be maintained, Maas said in Berlin. „That means withdrawing from this project would also mean taking back this political requirement,“ Maas said. A withdrawal would give Germany an instrument to protect Ukraine’s role as a gas transfer country.
One week ago, the Russian Coast Guard had forcibly stopped Ukrainian Navy boats from passing through the Strait of Kerch. The boats and crew were arrested, meanwhile, the Russian prosecutor’s office has accused the sailors in Moscow. The strategically important strait connects the Black Sea and the Sea of Azov. It is a bottleneck for shipping.
