The year-long freeze on the completion of the controversial Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline project may soon be over, as Russian pipe-laying vessel Akademik Cherskiy moored itself near the construction site in the Baltic Sea over the weekend, according to local media reports.
The pipeline can be seen from above as it is lowered from pipelay vessel Audacia's stinger and installed on the Baltic seafloor in German waters. Source: © Nord Stream 2 / Axel Schmidt
Last month, the consortium headed by Russia's Gazprom that is building the 1,230 km (764 mi) pipeline made the announcement that work would resume in December after it was suspended a year ago - with just 6% left to build - following the imposition of US sanctions on companies involved in the project.
Read more: Bundestag votes in favour for Nord Stream 2 completion as US consider further sanctions
The presence of the Akademik Cherskiy, as well as announcements by the Baltic Sea Waterways and Shipping Office for ship captains passing the area between December 5 and 31 to be careful due to construction works taking place, led to claims in the German media that the pipeline's completion is finally taking place.
Nonetheless, as construction work appears to have resumed, Robin Quinville, the US ambassador to Germany, made calls for Berlin to impose a moratorium on the pipeline.
Quinville said that it would send a clear signal that Europe will no longer tolerate "the persistent malicious behaviour of Russia".
"This pipeline is not just an economic project, but the Kremlin's political tool to bypass Ukraine and divide Europe," he added.
Russia's response to the US ambassador's call was one of indignation, with spokeswoman Maria Zakharova writing on the Russian Foreign Ministry's Facebook page that Quinville's words were "political aggression and illegal opposition".
Read more: Nord Stream 2: Bundestag report finds US sanctions do not breach international law
In a further development, a report in German tabloid Bild last week said that the Chancellery in the federal state of Mecklenburg-Pomerania - where Nord Stream 2 makes landfall in the city of Greifswald - was looking to circumvent US sanctions through the use of a legal loophole.
Corresponding reports in local media outlets said the loophole would involve the creation of a non-profit "Foundation for Climate Protection". Through the foundation - essentially a slush fund - Nord Stream 2 would be identified as a project important for environmental protection.
German companies would then be free to supply their services to the Foundation, whilst technically and crucially for the purposes of avoiding sanctions, not directly cooperating with the Nord Stream 2 project.
The pipeline, when completed, will double the supply of Russian gas to Germany and avoid transit fees through Ukraine.
Russia has always stated that the project is purely economic, though the US and its allies in Warsaw and Kiev have opposed it arguing that it would make the EU dependent on Moscow.
Read more: "Freedom gas": US to double LNG exports to EU
Last week, the German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas said that despite both parties in the US holding similar views on Nord Stream 2, he hopes the issue will be settled following the inauguration of Joe Biden as president at the end of January.
“We don’t cherish illusions about the issue. There’s hardly any difference in views between Democrats and Republicans. However, a renewed strain and another way of discussing will help to achieve progress on the matter," Maas told weekly news magazine Der Spiegel.
He added that it was understood that the US was pursuing its own economic interests and looking to increase sales of liquified natural gas to Europe.
“I don’t see a problem about improving German infrastructure for importing LNG. But from the political point of view, we see the situation [with Nord Stream 2] differently: we are not becoming dependent on anyone once we complete the Nord Stream 2 pipeline,” he added.
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