Beijing, 28 Jan (Xinhua) -- German and U.S. officials warned Russia on the 27th that if the Russian military "invades" Ukraine, the "Nord Stream-2" natural gas pipeline project jointly built by Russian and German enterprises will not be activated.
Speaking in the Bundestag on the same day, German Foreign Minister Annalena Berbock said the German government was considering a possible "package of strong sanctions" imposed on Russia, including abandoning Nord Stream-2.
Austrian Minister for European and International Affairs Schalenberg (left) speaks with German Foreign Minister Berberk before the EU Foreign Ministers' Meeting begins, at the EU headquarters in Brussels, Belgium, on January 24. (Photo by Xinhua news agency reporter Zheng Huansong)
The Nord Stream-2 pipeline, which runs from Russia around Ukraine and through the Baltic Sea to Germany, is another pipeline for Russia's natural gas exports to Europe, which began construction in 2018 and was completed in September 2021, and has not yet been approved for operation.
The United States has always opposed Nord Stream-2, calling it a Russian geostrategic project. Russia said that the US obstruction of this project is intended to squeeze russia's energy market share, in an attempt to sell US-made natural gas to Europe at high prices.
Victoria Newland, undersecretary of state for political affairs at the U.S. Department of State, said on the 27th: "I think Berlin's statement today is very, very tough ... If Russia invades Ukraine, nord stream-2 will not move forward anyway. ”
Two men stroll through Red Square in Moscow, russia, on Jan. 26. (Photo by Xinhua News Agency reporter Bai Xueqi)
According to the Associated Press, Germany has previously been criticized by the United States and other NATO allies for its reluctance to send weapons to Ukraine. Belberg explained on the 27th that "a football team does not need 11 centers with the same responsibilities, but 11 players with the same goals and their respective duties", although Germany has not contributed militarily, it will continue to assist Ukraine financially.
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz is scheduled to visit Washington on Feb. 7 to discuss the situation in Ukraine with U.S. President Joseph Biden. This is his first visit to the United States since he became prime minister.
Biden had a telephone conversation with Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky on the 27th. National Security Council spokeswoman Emily Horn told the media that Biden told Zelenskiy in a phone call that Russia was "highly likely" to invade Ukraine in February.
Ukrainian Foreign Minister Demitro Kureba said on social media Twitter on the 27th that before the United States submitted a written reply to the draft security agreement to Russia, the Ukrainian side had read the text and had no comments.
Ukrainian President Zelenskiy, left, meets with U.S. Secretary of State Blinken in Kiev on Jan. 19. (Xinhua News Agency, courtesy of the Office of the President of Ukraine)
The United States and NATO submitted written replies to Russia on the 26th, formally responding to the draft security agreement proposed by the Russian side to them in December last year. In the draft, the Russian side sought that NATO would not expand eastward and would not include Ukraine and other countries in NATO.
For the written replies of the United States and NATO, Russian officials responded on the 27th that the other side did not solve the core concerns of the Russian side, but said that negotiations could still be continued.
The deterioration of Russian-Ukrainian relations has recently accelerated, with the two sides deploying large amounts of military personnel and equipment in the border areas between the two countries. The United States, Ukraine and NATO said that Russia has gathered heavy troops in the area close to the eastern border of Ukraine and has the potential to "invade". The Russian side denied this, stressing that NATO activities threaten russia's border security and that russia has the right to mobilize troops within its territory to defend its territory. From January 10 to 13 this year, Russia held dialogues with the United States and NATO on Issues such as Ukraine, but achieved no practical results. (Wang Hongbin)
Source: Xinhua News Agency