"Lines are being drawn between Congress and the Biden administration over Nord Stream 2, the unfinished natural gas pipeline that would double gas exported from Russia directly to Germany.
Under black-letter laws passed by Congress in 2017, 2019, and 2020, the administration is to sanction entities it has determined are involved in the pipeline’s completion.
Sanctions range from vessels engaged in the pipeline’s construction to entities providing broader support such as insurance, certification, and installation services to the project.
After the sanctions legislation in 2019 was enacted, Switzerland’s Allseas, whose ships were laying the remaining section of the pipe in Danish waters, pulled out of the project and the construction halted.
... following November’s presidential election here, construction has begun once again.
... so far, the administration has not moved to sanction any additional companies or entities involved—despite ... the Danish Maritime Authority has actually listed other Russian vessels working with a previously sanctioned ship on the pipeline.
... the pipeline is nearing completion and the Kremlin is testing whether then-candidate Biden’s criticism of the pipeline was just rhetoric now that he’s president.
... Complicating matters for the Biden White House and the State Department is the desire to renew transatlantic relations—with Germany seen as key to doing so since it’s the most powerful of the continent’s powers.
... the current government under Chancellor Angela Merkel is determined to move forward with the project.
Sanctions against companies now are undoubtedly seen by some in the administration as getting in the way of that larger agenda.
... As we have already seen with Merkel’s race to complete the Comprehensive Investment Agreement between the EU and China before Biden took office, the chancellor is determined to prioritize German interests over a broader agenda in which it is asked to support a tougher transatlantic approach both to Moscow and Beijing.
... In fact, not everyone in Merkel’s party, the Christian Democrats, is even on board.
The German Greens are opposed and even some within the typically Russian-leaning Free Democrats are now calling the project into question.
Only the Social Democrats, whose former party leader and ex-chancellor Gerhard Schroeder is Nord Stream 2’s chairman of the board, seem to fully back the project.
... On several occasions, the EU Parliament has voted in opposition to the pipeline’s completion.
And the EU itself has not altered its formal energy strategy, which, among other things, has a goal of diversifying energy supplies rather than increasing dependence on a market-dominant supplier such as Gazprom.
Key allies in Europe understand the pipeline project is as much a strategic play by Moscow as a commercial deal.
Once completed, whatever leverage that Ukraine has vis a vis Moscow as a transit path for Russian gas to Europe will dissolve.
Already, with the completion of Nord Stream I, the percentage of gas flowing through Ukraine to Europe had dropped from some 80 percent to less than half that.
Although the pipeline is 95 percent complete, it will still need a certificate from an independent company that its materials and construction meet EU safety standards before it can go into operation.
... In addition, a German government regulator must certify that the pipeline operator is independent of the gas provider, Gazprom—which, in turn, must be assessed by the European Commission for compliance with EU energy directives.
Time is short but it has not run out."
