France has been pressing Germany to scrap the Russian Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline project in light of the detention of opposition leader Alexei Navalny and a crackdown against his supporters, French European Affairs Minister Clement Beaune said yesterday.
Nord Stream 2
Credit: Nord Stream 2 / Axel Schmidt
Nord Stream 2 has long been a controversial topic in Europe and across the Atlantic. Opponents such as the US and Poland say that the project will increase reliance on Russian gas in Germany and the EU. Until now, however, French opposition has been relatively muted by comparison.
Read more: US broadens sanctions on European companies equipping Nord Stream 2
"We have always said we have the greatest doubts on this project in this context," Beaune told France Inter radio.
When asked if Paris wanted Berlin to put a stop to the project, Beaune replied: "Indeed, we have said this".
The French call came following the Russian government's crackdown on the opposition led by Alexei Navalny, who was arrested two weeks ago upon his arrival in Moscow from Berlin, where he had spent several months recovering from being poisoned with a nerve agent. Navalny blames the poisoning on Moscow, which the Kremlin has strongly denied.
Mr Navalny is accused of violating the probation of his suspended sentence from a 2014 money-laundering conviction, which he rejects as politically-motivated. If found guilty at the court hearing - which is taking place today - Mr Navalny could face several years in jail.
"Sanctions have already been imposed, we could do that, but we have to be clear, they will not be enough. The Nord Stream 2 option is one under consideration," Beaune said, though he also acknowledged: "It's a decision for Germany because the pipeline is in Germany."
Read more: MEPs want Nord Stream 2 stopped & sanctions on Russian oligarchs
In mid-January, the European Parliament passed a resolution calling for an end to Nord Stream 2 as well as a further raft of sanctions on officials close to Russian President Vladimir Putin.
However, at a meeting of EU member states' foreign ministers the following week, it was announced that no new sanctions or asset freezes would be adopted and that the bloc preferred to take a more cooperative approach.
Berlin has demanded Nevalny's release but, yesterday, Chancellor Angela Merkel's spokeswoman Martina Fietz told the press that she had "no new updates" on the pipeline, which has strong backing from Merkel. "The government has not changed its basic position," she added.
Work resumed on the project in December after being suspended for nearly a year due to the imposition of US sanctions.
Read more: Nord Stream 2: Construction resumes as Germany mulls sanctions loophole & US demands moratorium
However, there are those who think that putting a stop to Nord Stream 2 would be a futile endeavour. In an interview with DW, Green party politician and former German environment minister Jürgen Trittin, said that cancellation would mean that Germany would have to pay damages to Russian developers who would simultaneously be exporting their gas to Europe by other means.
"I have never been a friend of this pipeline, but to stop it at this point in time would possibly have a very high price, without achieving any real effect," he said. "After all, Russia has plenty of opportunities to export its gas via other routes."
The project's main investor, Russian state-owned energy giant Gazprom, says that Nord Stream 2 is now 94% complete with just over 150 km of pipeline remaining to be laid mostly in Danish waters.
If completed, the 1,230 km (765 miles) long pipeline will deliver tens of billions of cubic metres of natural gas per year from Russia to Germany.
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