Germany, US threaten to halt Nord 2 Stream gas pipeline if Russia invades Ukraine

Germany and the US have both threatened to put a halt to the Nord 2 Stream gas pipeline between Russia and Germany should Moscow give orders to invade Ukraine.

German foreign minister Anna Baerbock said on Thursday that Berlin was discussing a “strong package of sanctions” for Russia in the event of any incursion or invasion, and according to AFP, these sanctions would include the Nord 2 Stream pipeline.

Speaking to German media, Baerbock added, “We want dialogue at all times…[but] the cornerstones of the European peace order are non-negotiable.”

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Baerbock’s announcement comes on the back of US State Department spokesperson Ned Price’s suggestion that the US and Germany would work in tandem to use the Nord 2 Stream pipeline as leverage against Russia in a bid to avoid potential military conflict, and possibly war.

“It is leverage for us. It is leverage for Germany. It is leverage for the trans-Atlantic community because gas is not flowing. To be clear, it is not leverage for Vladimir Putin. If Russia invades Ukraine, one way or another, Nord Stream 2 will not move forward,” Price had told NPR earlier.

The Nord 2 Stream pipeline was announced in 2015 at an estimated cost of $11 billion and was backed enthusiastically by then Chancellor Angela Merkel, who saw it as a cheap way to power 26 million German homes. However, even she later acknowledged that the project had political ramifications as the pipeline bypassed Ukraine as a transit country while connecting Russia and Germany.

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The pipeline was completed in September 2021, but its owner, Russian energy giant Gazprom, is awaiting final legal permission from German regulators before taking control and resuming operations.

While commentators had long said that the pipeline could give Russian President Vladimir Putin leverage over Germany and other European countries, the pipeline could now be used as leverage in the standoff between Ukraine and Russia.