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Friday,23 July 2021 (YJC)_ Ukraine requested to hold consultations regarding the recently concluded deal on the Nord Stream 2 pipeline between the US and Germany.
Ukraine requested to hold consultations regarding the recently concluded deal on the Nord Stream 2 pipeline between the US and Germany, EU Spokeswoman for Foreign Affairs Nabila Massrali has said. She noted that Kiev invoked Articles 274 and 378 of the EU-Ukraine Association Agreement to hold these consultations.
"The articles evoked refer to cooperation on infrastructure under the trade-related energy chapter of the DCFTA [Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Area] title and to energy cooperation under the title of economic and sectoral cooperation", Massrali said.
Ukraine's state-owned oil and gas company Naftogaz earlier condemned the agreement between the US and Germany, which promises to stop Washington's sanctions policy against Nord Stream 2 in exchange for defending Ukraine's interests. Naftogaz argued that gas continues to be Russia's "geopolitical weapon" and thus the pipeline's operator, Nord Stream AG, must be slapped with US sanctions. Both Moscow and Berlin have repeatedly rejected claims that Nord Stream 2 is a political project by Russia and that it allegedly undermines European energy security.
Despite this, the US has been opposing the pipeline's construction for years, demanding that Europe find an alternative to Russian gas, possibly in the form of American LNG. However, US President Joe Biden admitted earlier this year that Nord Stream 2 can't be stopped. He negotiated an agreement with German Chancellor Angela Merkel that requires a gas transit contract between Russia and Ukraine, which expires in 2024, to be extended by 10 years. The agreement also stipulates investments in Ukraine that would make the country less dependent on Russian gas and profits from its transit to Europe.
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