The head of the White House Joe Biden has no plans to impose sanctions on Russia’s Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline, despite demands from the US Congress, Politico newspaper reports
The publication recalled that Texas Republican Senator Ted Cruz has repeatedly criticised the Nord Stream 2 project, demanding that Washington impose a series of sanctions on the pipeline, which had previously been passed on Capitol Hill.
“He wants Biden to impose sanctions that would stop Russia’s Nord Stream 2 pipeline to Europe. Cruz is using his power to keep candidates at the State Department as well as at the Treasury to prove his point by upsetting the White House”, – Politico wrote.
According to the paper, Cruz is currently blocking the appointment of several dozen applicants for diplomatic posts, including ambassadors to several countries. The situation is of great concern to the White House. The Biden administration notes that such a state of affairs could be a blow to the position of the United States on the world stage.
The White House has made several attempts to discuss its actions with the senator. In particular, the US Assistant to the President for National Security Jake Sullivan had a telephone conversation with Cruz on August 10. The senator responded that he would only be prepared to give up blocking diplomatic nominations if new restrictions against Nord Stream 2 were introduced.
The Nord Stream 2 pipeline consists of two strings from the Russian coast to Germany with a total capacity of 55 billion cubic metres of gas per year. The US has been actively opposing the construction of the pipeline, but in July Washington and Berlin reached an agreement: the US authorities acknowledged that sanctions would not be able to stop the construction of Nord Stream 2.