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The United States and Germany on Wednesday pledged sanctions on Russia if the Kremlin uses the controversial Nord Stream 2 pipeline as a weapon against Ukraine.
The warnings came just hours after the United States and Germany reached an agreement to allow the completion of a pipeline that will transport natural gas from Russia to Germany – a move that U.S. lawmakers and European countries have questioned.
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U.S. and German officials have not only vowed to apply their own sanctions on Russia to limit natural gas exports if the Kremlin abuses the pipeline, but have said they will call on other allied countries to do the same.
“This pledge aims to ensure that Russia will not use any pipelines, including Nord Stream 2, to achieve aggressive political goals by using energy as a weapon,” the United States and Germany said on Wednesday in a statement. joint press release.
Senior State Department officials said German Chancellor Angela Merkel urged future chancellors to the deal to hold Russia accountable after she leaves office later this year, although they did not specify How? ‘Or’ What.
The Nord Stream 2 pipeline will allow Russia to double the amount of natural gas it exports to Germany.
While supporters of the pipeline argue it will increase energy security in Europe, others have said it could be detrimental to Ukraine.
Ukraine currently receives a third of all Russian natural gas exports to Europe.
But opponents of the pipeline fear that Russia will use its new export capacity with Germany to deprive Ukraine of needed natural gas imports – a move they have already used amid heightened geopolitical conflicts.
In an effort to further support Ukraine’s energy security, Germany has pledged under the US deal to create a billion dollar “Green Fund” to help energy independence of Ukraine. Kiev.
The fund will rely on German contributions and third party investments.
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An initial deposit of $ 175 million will be made by Germany for renewable energy, hydrogen development, accelerating the country’s transition from coal and the transition to carbon neutrality.
The United States plans to help Ukraine by providing “technical assistance and political support consistent with the fund’s objectives.”
State Department officials argued on Wednesday that the White House – which faced severe backlash from the GOP for lifting Russian sanctions on the pipeline earlier this year – was “making the most of a bad hand ”.
Officials noted that even with the US sanctions imposed on the Kremlin, Russia continued to move forward with construction and the pipeline was 90% complete by the time President Biden took office.
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Germany is also preparing to launch the “Ukraine Resilience Package” to support energy security with the aim of protecting Ukraine against “potential future attempts by Russia to cut gas supplies”.
The United States and Germany said they also remain committed to improving infrastructure and energy security in central and eastern Europe.
Biden is expected to meet Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on August 30.
Edward Lawrence contributed to this report.
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