Moscow Pans US Envoy's Scaremongering Rhetoric Towards Nord Stream 2

MOSCOW (Sputnik) - Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova has lashed out at the US envoy in Berlin for trying to scare off German firms working on the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline.

"It is part of a larger campaign… to contain Russia globally… Of course, it is unacceptable and it is not what an ambassador should be doing, it is in fact the opposite of that", Zakharova told the TV channel Rossiya 1.

Nord Stream 2 is a joint venture of Russian gas giant Gazprom and five European companies. It aims to deliver 55 billion cubic metres (1.9 trillion cubic feet) of Russian gas annually to the European Union. The project has been welcomed by some countries in Europe and opposed by others that feel it might increase their dependence on Russia.

German media reported last week that Richard Grenell had written letters to companies involved in the project that seeks to bring Russian natural gas to Europe across the Baltic Sea, saying they faced a significant risk of sanctions.

READ MORE: Nord Stream 2 AG Built Over 249 Miles of Gas Pipeline – Spokesman

European Commissioner Guenther Oettinger said in December that construction was already underway and no US threats could stop the project.

The United States has adopted a provision that allows it to sanction countries involved in the project to bring 1.9 trillion cubic feet of gas annually across the Baltic Sea, bypassing Ukraine.