Germany-SPD: Nord Stream 2 should not be associated with political disputes with Russia

The Nord Stream 2 pipeline carrying Russian gas to Germany should not be linked to political and human rights disputes with Moscow, a senior Social Democrat (SPD) official leading the coalition government told Reuters. Germany.

The pipeline was completed in September, but is awaiting approval from German and European Union regulators, and some politicians – in Germany and abroad – have said it should be blocked due to various political disagreements with Russia.

“Nord Stream 2 is almost connected to the network, with only the lack of legal permits preventing its final launch,” SPD general secretary Kevin Connert said in an interview.

“At some point there must be political and legal peace in such a debate,” he added.

Kunert said the work, led by Russia’s Gazprom, should not be linked to reactions to Russia’s territorial disputes with Ukraine and to human rights issues, in which Berlin has clear positions and diplomatic strategies.

SPD support for the Baltic Sea pipeline, a geopolitical stimulus for the United States and countries such as Ukraine and Poland, runs counter to the position of its newest ally in the coalition, the Greens, but reflects the stance of the Christian Democrats (CDU) of former Chancellor Angela Merkel.

Merkel said the pipeline was a purely commercial project, a line continued by SPD Chancellor Olaf Soltz.

In a reference to the Greens on EU energy definitions – which have classified nuclear energy and gas as climate-friendly – Kunhert said the attempt to reject the Brussels proposals was “utopian”, given that Germany’s opposition to nuclear energy had put it in a minority position.

The EU is also in favor of using gas as a bridge technology under certain conditions until renewable energy sources and clean hydrogen can replace it. Kunhert said that the majority of environmental groups accept this reasoning.