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Expanded sanctions against the Nord Stream 2 pipeline were included in the bill on the US defense budget RIA Novosti reports.
It is specified that the document was agreed by both houses of the United States Congress.
The sanctions place restrictions on insurance companies and certification organizations. In addition, companies that provide services for the modernization or installation of welding equipment on ships involved in the construction were attacked.
It is stipulated that the president of the United States may waive sanctions against a particular company if it is in national interests.
The United States first imposed sanctions on participants in the construction of Nord Stream 2 in late 2019, shortly before the planned completion date. Later, the owner of the Swiss pipeline vessel Allseas refused to cooperate with Nord Stream 2 AG. As a result, it was necessary to search for a replacement, which was the Russian ship “Akademik Chersky”, but also had problems due to the inability to find an insurance company willing to cooperate.
On November 29, the United States declared it incapable of stopping the construction of Nord Stream 2 with the help of sanctions. Katja Yafimava, Senior Researcher at the Oxford Institute for Energy Research, spoke about this. According to her, at present, the gas pipeline project is facing three serious problems: the need to find a pipelayer to complete the construction, take out insurance and receive a certificate that the project is safe and meets EU standards. “Overall, Nord Stream 2 can still be completed by summer 2021 and receive all the necessary certificates for gas supply next winter,” Yafimava said. In his opinion, the United States “must understand that they cannot stop the project.” Stronger sanctions pressure on Nord Stream 2 and project participants could increase construction completion time, but Gazprom will, in any event, find a way to overcome each of the three main hurdles.
