Financial Threats: US Senators Promise "Serious Consequences" for German Port Due to "Nord Stream 2"

Three US senators sent a letter to the operator of the German port of Mukran in the city of Sassnitz demanding to stop work to support the construction of the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline. The newspaper Handelsblatt reports.

The letter was written by Senators Ted Cruise, Tom Cotton and Ron Johnson. According to the newspaper, in a three-page letter dated August 5, the senators threaten the operator with "serious consequences" if the company "does not immediately stop logistical support" for the pipeline.

“If you continue to provide goods, services and support for the Nord Stream 2 project, you will ruin the future financial survival of your company,” reads a letter in the possession of Handelsblatt.

The port supplies pipes to two Russian ships Fortuna and Akademik Chersky, which are participating in the completion of the gas pipeline.

"Your supply of" Fortune "or" Academician Chersky "can definitely be subject to sanctions at the moment when one of these ships submerges the pipe for the construction of" Nord Stream 2 ", - the letter of the American senators says.

In turn, the spokesman for energy of the faction "Alternative for Germany" Steffen Kotrets called the US actions "an economic war against sovereign energy policy, in particular, the gas policy of Germany and Europe."

He declared the need to give an immediate and direct response to the threats of the senators, and also called for imposing sanctions on the authors of the letter and banning entry to Germany.

“European countries must demonstrate unity. This will show whether the EU is capable of acting. Such things should not be accepted, ”RIA Novosti quoted Kontre as saying.

At the end of July, the burgomaster of Sassnitz Frank Kracht, in an interview with RT Deutsch, commented on the possibility of Washington imposing new sanctions against Nord Stream 2, under which the city could fall, and called such actions by the American side a violation of international law.

“Europe is a sovereign territory, and I think that Europe should not allow such interference in economic issues,” explained Kracht.

In addition, he noted that projects like Nord Stream 2 are important for the development of a small port city.

“I would like to have jobs that do not depend on the season. We will be able to achieve this through the creation of jobs in such projects, as well as through long-term settlement, settlement for industrial work. Thanks to such projects, we will be able to advertise our performance range internationally, so that the economic sectors operating at the international level pay attention to Sassnitz-Mukran and settle here, ”the politician said.

We will remind, earlier the House of Representatives of the US Congress approved the draft defense budget for the 2021 fiscal year, which contains amendments to strengthen sanctions against Nord Stream 2. If the new law comes into force, then all persons directly or indirectly connected with the construction of the gas pipeline will fall under it.

American senators go far beyond their responsibilities, considering themselves entitled to write such letters containing "rude and shameless threats." This opinion was expressed in an interview with RT by a member of the Federation Council Committee on International Affairs Sergei Tsekov.

“I believe that the United States will not achieve its goal with such a systematic pressure. Nord Stream 2 will be completed, Germany will be put into operation, and other EU countries will benefit from this, ”the senator emphasized.

In turn, Igor Yushkov, an expert at the Financial University under the Russian government, a leading analyst at the National Energy Security Fund, pointed out that the letter of American politicians does not have any legal basis, and the port's activities comply with all laws.

“There are no restrictions on the provision of services for ships that have cost or will build Nord Stream 2. There are ships there, they have all the necessary documents and the German port is simply obliged to accept them. It is unclear on what grounds they should drive out, for example, "Akademik Chersky". I think that this is just an attempt to scare European business into refusing to cooperate, ”the expert noted.

It is worth noting that in July, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo also said that the department could extend the law "On Countering America's Adversaries Through Sanctions" (CAATSA) to Russian gas pipelines Nord Stream 2 and Turkish Stream (its second line).

He added that this is an "unequivocal warning" to those companies that provide assistance to Russian projects, and urged them to immediately stop participating in them or prepare for the consequences.

Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova called such a statement the use of political pressure for unscrupulous competition and stressed that this was "an indicator of the weakness of the American system."