Hochstein, who held a number of senior advisor positions in the government and the private sector, was also a special envoy for international energy affairs and an assistant secretary of state for energy resources during President Barack Obama’s tenure.
“It doesn’t have any legal force, it’s not a treaty,” she said about the U.S.-Germany statement. “Any new government coming to Germany can just ignore it or can change it.”
According to Zalishchuk, Nord Stream 2 will be finished by late August. “But to finish the pipeline, and to make it operational, are quite two different things,” she added.
To become operational, Nord Stream 2 must be certified which means that the pipeline has to comply with all kinds of standards and rules required by the European Union as Germany is a member of the EU, the advisor explained.
How Nord Stream 2 Impacts Security
After the collapse of the Soviet Union, Russia decided to use that energy infrastructure and energy projects as instruments to influence former Soviet republics, Zalishchuk said.
The Nord Stream 2 project started in 2015 to bypass gas transit routes through Ukraine after Russia seized Ukraine’s Crimea peninsula and backed a rebellion in Ukrainian Donbas in 2014, the advisor explained.
Zalishchuk believed that “the Ukrainian gas system was kind of a deterrent for further Russian aggression on Ukrainian territory” because Russia depends on Ukraine if it wants to supply its gas to consumers in Europe.
Also, the Ukrainian transit pipeline makes European consumers reliant on Ukraine for their gas needs, Zalishchuk said, so transiting gas gave the country “a security shield” from further Russian aggression into Ukrainian territory.
“As soon as Europeans can get their gas through other channels we understand that it makes Ukraine more vulnerable.”
“This pipeline is not just money, it’s not just gas but first of all, it’s a security shield. It’s a security argument,” Zalishchuk added.
Nord Stream 2 will not only impact Ukraine’s security but also Europe’s security, she said.
“There will be a kind of ‘legal militarization’ of the Baltic because according to the Kremlin’s logic, the new two lines of the NS2 and the existing two lines of the NS1[Nord Stream 1] need enhanced protection against hostile actions by third countries,” Gonchar said at the U.S.-Ukraine Security Dialogue in March.
Lawmakers Oppose Nord Stream 2
“We consider Nord Stream 2 a geopolitical project geared towards expanding Russia’s influence on Europe by dominating the energy market,” said Menendez joined by chairmen of foreign affairs committees from Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, Poland, Czechia, Ireland, Ukraine, and the UK in the statement.
“The completion of the pipeline will strengthen the impact of Russian gas in the European energy mix, endanger the national security of EU member states and the United States, and threaten the already precarious security and sovereignty of Ukraine,” the lawmakers said.
“We expect a clear commitment from Germany to reduce dependency on gas imported from Russia and move towards green energy.”
The signatories also urged NATO to strengthen deterrence, especially on the eastern flank from the Baltic Sea to the Black Sea. They also called for delivering a road map for Ukraine’s path towards joining NATO and a plan for the country’s accession to the EU.
They also demanded that any further agreements on Nord Stream 2 should be consulted across the transatlantic community, the statement said.