Nord Stream 2: MEPs call for halt to Russian gas pipeline

Nord Stream 2: MEPs call for halt to Russian gas pipeline

Publishedduration27 minutes ago

image copyrightReuters

image captionUS sanctions have been imposed on this ship, the Fortuna, whose job is to lay the rest of the pipeline

Germany has come under increased pressure to halt a Russian oil pipeline following the detention in Moscow of Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny.

The European Parliament has backed a call for Nord Stream 2 to be scrapped.

MEPs called on EU states to impose sanctions on any Russians involved in jailing Mr Navalny after he returned from Germany where he had been recovering from a nerve agent attack.

The US has imposed sanctions on a Russian ship laying the pipeline.

Washington argues the project will increase Russian influence over Europe.

The US Treasury's action against the ship Fortuna came in the final days of the Trump administration, but President Joe Biden is expected to pursue the same policy, according to his nominee for secretary of state, Antony Blinken. In 2016, Mr Biden said the pipeline was a "bad deal" for Europe.

Asked about the US move on Thursday, German Chancellor Angela Merkel said her "basic attitude" on the €10bn ($11bn) project to double Russian gas exports to Germany had not changed, but she wanted to discuss the issue with the Biden administration.

"We have