The United States lost to itself in the fight against Nord Stream 2.

This was announced on the air of Solovyov Live by Maria Zakharova, the official representative of the Russian Foreign Ministry, assessing the agreement between the United States and Germany.

“The project has taken place.

And now we see ... You know, there is such a beautiful poem: "Winter is not angry for nothing, / Its time has passed - / Spring is knocking into the yard / And drives from the yard" (author - Fyodor Tyutchev. -

RT

).

The time has passed for this attempt by the United States to prevent the implementation of a commercial project, ”the diplomat said.

In her opinion, it is difficult for Washington to come to terms with defeat, since it made too much bet on preventing the construction of Nord Stream 2, and as a result, the gas pipeline will still be launched.

“I understand that perhaps they feel like losers, victims.

But even if this is so, then they have lost to themselves.

They raised the stakes to such a height.

It was they who stated the purpose of blocking their project.

It was they who gave this story such a media level, ”said the official representative of the Russian Foreign Ministry.

Meanwhile, the US State Department called the position on Nord Stream 2 a compromise step to preserve relations with the FRG and prevent the "worst scenario."

“Without the abandonment of sanctions, we would have faced ... spoiled relations with Germany, a potential shortage or lack of funds to protect our partners, including Ukraine and Poland, as well as other NATO and EU countries at the forefront, and the worst scenario for the development of events in all directions, "- said the head of the press service of the State Department Ned Price at a press briefing for journalists.

  • State Department Press Officer Ned Price

  • Reuters

  • © Nicholas Kamm

Recall that at the end of July, the United States and Germany announced a deal on Nord Stream 2.

Washington admits that sanctions will not stop the project.

Berlin, in turn, pledged to seek an extension of the transit of Russian gas through Ukraine after 2024.

At the same time, the United States retained the right to take action if Russia uses the energy issue as a "geopolitical weapon" in Europe and to commit "aggressive actions" against Ukraine.

In Russia, such statements have been repeatedly rejected.

Press Secretary of the President of the Russian Federation Dmitry Peskov stressed that "Russia has always been and remains a responsible guarantor of the energy security of the European continent."

In turn, Russian Ambassador to the United States Anatoly Antonov called the accusations from the West "unfair competition." 

“Attempts to present us as an aggressor and a country conducting“ malicious ”activities have long become the hallmark of Russophobes.

Threats against us are groundless and useless.

We do not accept such rhetoric, just as we cannot accept the practice of illegitimate unilateral sanctions, ”Antonov said.  

At the same time, Gazprom announced its readiness to continue transporting gas through Ukraine, if it is economically feasible and the technical condition of the Ukrainian gas transportation system will allow it.

Attempts to pressure will not leave

Experts believe that the current position of Washington on the implementation of the Russian-European energy project is due to the fact that the administration of President Joe Biden is trying to consolidate the West against Russia and China.

Meanwhile, without the support of Germany, these efforts are in vain, they say.

“It is practically impossible to do this without Germany.

The White House administration is not going to worsen relations with the Federal Republic of Germany, so it will not make any attempts to put pressure on it on the issue of completing the construction of Nord Stream 2.

Biden understands that in Germany this is a matter of political subjectivity, "Konstantin Blokhin, a leading researcher at the Center for Security Studies of the Russian Academy of Sciences, told RT.

According to him, abandoning Nord Stream 2 would cause more damage to Germany than all US sanctions combined.

“The refusal from Russian gas would mean that Germany must buy American LNG at fabulous prices or receive hydrocarbons from the Middle East, which are controlled by US allies.

In this situation, Nord Stream 2 is the only way for Berlin to increase its political subjectivity, "Blokhin explained.

However, the expert stressed, Washington does not need such independence of Germany.

Therefore, as suggested by the analyst, American foreign policy will now focus on ensuring that Nord Stream 2 is not used at full capacity.

Pavel Feldman, Deputy Director of the Institute for Strategic Studies and Forecasts of the RUDN University, shares a similar opinion.

In his opinion, the signing of an agreement between Washington and Berlin "does not mean that this story has been crowned with success for us."

Most likely, already during the operation of Nord Stream 2, the United States will attempt to undermine the effectiveness of this project and introduce some additional sanctions, but already in the course of its operation.

“Perhaps, under pressure from Washington, Brussels or Berlin will set Russia a condition not to load Nord Stream 2 to its full capacity in order to preserve transit through Ukraine and thus allow Kiev to earn money.

This proportion of gas supplies through Nord Stream 2 and Ukraine will become the main subject of discussion in the near future, "Pavel Feldman said in an interview with RT.

Assessing the attitude of the United States to sanctions, Maria Zakharova noted that Washington had no need for reasons to impose restrictions for a long time.

“At the moment, they do not even need pretexts ... If they deem it necessary for themselves, they will continue to distort international law, bilateral agreements, enter and exit them,” the diplomat said.

Reason for claims

Despite all the assurances of Western partners about their commitment to support Ukraine, Kiev still remained dissatisfied with the agreement signed between the United States and Germany.

In particular, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmitry Kuleba said that Kiev has many questions about the implementation of the adopted document.

“The German-American statement does not resolve the issue of the security of Ukraine, which is directly affected by the launch of Nord Stream 2.

And this, in fact, is our main claim to this statement.

There are insufficiently clear and specific things written in the security block, ”Kuleba said at a briefing.

Further, the head of the foreign policy department of Ukraine switched to football terminology, adding that Kiev does not consider the agreement between Germany and the United States "the end of history."   

“Yesterday the game from regular time was simply transferred to overtime, but we still have two halves, and if necessary, a series of post-match penalties, in order to protect the interests of Ukraine as much as possible.

Therefore, the German-American statement should not be regarded as the end of history, ”Kuleba said.

In turn, Olga Stefanishina, Deputy Prime Minister for European and Euro-Atlantic Integration of Ukraine, in view of the upcoming launch of Nord Stream 2, demanded guarantees from the EU to preserve gas transit.

“First of all, this is a package of energy solutions.

This is a guarantee of the preservation of transit and the continuation of contractual relations within the framework of a trilateral contract, ”RIA Novosti quoted her as saying.

  • GTS of Ukraine

  • © REUTERS / Gleb Garanich

Stefanishina also said that in Kiev they are waiting for compensation due to the completion of the SP-2.

The corresponding request was sent to the European Commission more than half a year ago, she added.

“Unfortunately, there is still no answer.

I hope that such circumstances will be a good reason for the EU to think about this proposal, ”said the Deputy Prime Minister for European and Euro-Atlantic Integration of Ukraine.

Olga Stefanishina's claims were assessed by the head of the Federation Council's Commission on Information Policy Alexei Pushkov, who called them "the position of a freeloader."

"The typical position of a freeloader, who himself is not capable of anything, but requires money, loans and guarantees, which, in fact, no one is obliged to give him," he wrote in his Telegram.

"Knock out at least some money"

According to experts, the statements of the representatives of Kiev look strange, given that the State Department spoke about the consultations with the Ukrainian side.

In particular, the head of the State Department's press service, Ned Price, spoke about this at a briefing.

“As for the Ukrainians, we have held more than a dozen consultations with them.

I can say that they are well aware of the content of this package of agreements.

Long before this Monday, they had provided the information needed to make decisions about its content.

Such meetings were held frequently and over many weeks, ”Price told reporters.

In this regard, analysts believe that the Ukrainian statements "are an attempt to put a good face on a bad game and a desire to knock out at least some money from partners."

"The authorities of Kiev are now preparing the ground to issue an invoice to the United States or Germany, which, in turn, do not intend to just invest in the Ukrainian budget," explained Konstantin Blokhin.

However, Pavel Feldman, in turn, noted that the Ukrainian authorities have no real instruments of pressure on the West.

“At the moment, Ukraine itself does not have any instruments to put pressure on Nord Stream 2, except to beg the European partners, who have recently been quite deaf to requests coming from Kiev,” the analyst concluded.