A natural gas pipeline being built under the Baltic Sea from Russia to the German coast is shaking up geopolitics. Nord Stream 2, as it’s called, fuels worries in the U.S. and other countries that the Kremlin’s leverage over Europe and its energy market may increase once the twin pipeline is operational. The U.S. administration has admitted that stopping the gas link would be a long shot. Russian President Vladimir Putin said June 4 that pipelaying for the first pipeline of the project had been completed and work on the second line was continuing. While the section still needs to be welded, that will probably take about 10 days, and Gazprom PJSC is ready to start filling the link with natural gas, Putin said. The second line may be finished within two months, he said.
Bloomberg: Why the world worries about Russia’s Nord Stream 2 pipeline
Gas pipes are seen strewn next to a Eugal / Nord Stream 2 station along the pipeline near the village of Wrangelsburg, north eastern Germany, on Sept. 8, 2020.
