US Urges Germany to Consider Sanctioning Russia Over Gas Supplies

WASHINGTON (Sputnik) - Germany should consider imposing sanctions on Russia over that country’s use of gas as a weapon against Europe, US State Department Senior Adviser for Global Energy Security Amos Hochstein said on Monday.

"I think we are getting close to that line," Hochstein said in response to a journalist question whether Russia is using energy as a weapon against Europe and should Germany respond by imposing sanctions. "If Russia indeed has gas to supply and it chooses not to and will only do so if Europe exceeds to other demands that are completely unrelated, then it is hard to make argument that it is not."

Hochstein urged Germany to pay attention to the energy situation with respect to Russia and also accused Moscow of politicizing of Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline.

"[The United States] did not change the view that this was a pipeline that probably should never built and it was not commercially driven, but rather political," he said.

The Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline, which consists of two tubes with a total capacity of 55 billion cubic meters per year, was completed on September 10. It delivers gas from Russia to Germany via the Baltic Sea. The process of certifying Nord Stream 2 AG as the pipeline’s independent operator is currently underway to ensure the project complies with the conditions of the February 12 EU Gas Directive.

Certification will take place in two stages. First, the German regulator, which has received a full package of documents necessary for certification in September, will develop a draft decision, and then the European Commission will provide an assessment.