A Natural Gas Pipeline Called Nord Stream Two

EXPLAINER: What is the Nord Stream 2 pipeline? Germany has suspended the approval process for Russia's Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline in response to Moscow's recognition of separatist regions in Ukraine

David McHugh, February 22, 2022 (Associated Press via ABC News)

“…German Chancellor Olaf Scholz has suspended the certification process for the Nord Stream 2 natural gas pipeline after Russia recognized separatist-held regions in eastern Ukraine, with the West fearing a full-scale invasion is next…[The 1,230-kilometer-long (764-mile-long) natural gas pipeline under the Baltic Sea] runs parallel to an earlier Nord Stream pipeline and would double its capacity, to 110 billion cubic meters of gas a year…[allowing Gazprom to] send gas to Europe's pipeline system without using existing pipelines running through Ukraine and Poland…

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Germany was required to submit a report on how the pipeline would affect energy security, and Scholz said that report was being withdrawn…[because Russia’s recognition of rebel-held areas in Ukraine marked a ‘serious break of international law’…Europe is a key market for Gazprom, whose sales support the Russian government budget. Europe needs gas because it's replacing decommissioned coal and nuclear plants before renewable energy sources such as wind and solar are sufficiently built up…[The pipeline] has been an irritant in U.S.-German relations…

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In Congress, Republicans and Democrats — in a rare bit of agreement — have long objected to Nord Stream 2…While Europe needs Russian gas, Gazprom also needs the European market. That interdependence is why many think Russia won't cut off supplies to Europe even if the Ukraine conflict escalates further, and Russian officials have underlined they have no intention to do that…[European governments have already been developing alternative natural gas supplies from] liquefied gas brought by ship from the U.S., Algeria and other places…” click here for more

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