By Jonny Tickle
1 Apr, 2021
With the controversial Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline nearing completion and US sanctions against contractors failing to stop its construction, its operator has reported an increased “provocative” activity of warships in the area.
According to Moscow news agency TASS, Nord Stream 2 AG’s branch director, Andrey Minin, claimed that the last three months have seen a growth in military presence in the area.
“After the resumption of Nord Stream 2 offshore construction in January 2021, there has been an increase in activity of military ships, planes, and helicopters, as well as civilian ships of foreign countries, whose actions are often provocative in nature,” Minin said, noting that the presence of these vessels could damage the pipeline.
According to Minin, there is a 1.5-mile (2.4-km) safety zone around the site that boats not involved in the construction should not enter.
Nevertheless, foreign military ships are regularly seen nearby. He also noted that a Polish anti-submarine aircraft regularly circles the area at a low altitude.
Minin listed several incidents that occurred in the last few days, including an unidentified submarine passing just a mile away from the anchor of ‘Fortuna’, the pipe-laying ship. Recent weeks have also seen fishing vessels enter the work protection zone.
Continue reading atwww.rt.com
German official calls for Nord Stream 2 postponement
By Alexandra Brzozowski
Apr.1, 2021
Germany’s Transatlantic Coordinator Peter Beyer on Wednesday called for a construction moratorium on the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline in a bid to repair transatlantic relations.
“The project is a serious stumbling block for the restart of transatlantic relations,” Beyer told EURACTIV’s media partner Wirtschaftswoche.
The Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline is more than 90% complete, with less than 150 kilometres left to be laid in German and Danish waters.
“The Americans expect us not only to change our rhetoric but also to let actions speak for themselves. I, therefore, advocate a construction moratorium for Nord Stream 2,” he added.
“European sovereignty must not be misunderstood or reinterpreted as a fortress Europe,” he said. “Strong Europe – yes. Isolation from the USA – no.”
German Chancellor Angela Merkel in February repeated previous comments that Berlin is sticking with its support for the Nord Stream 2 pipeline “for the time being”, after EU-Russia relations soured further over the treatment by Russia of dissident Alexei Navalny and the expulsion of European diplomats.
Continue reading at www.euractiv.com
