An information session between the State Department and the congressional staff on Vladimir Putin’s gas pipeline from Russia and Germany got tense this week, while Biden officials are asking questions about why they did not move faster and more aggressively with sanctions on stop completing it.
- The Biden officials also denied that he had negotiated with the Germans about a possible side agreement to complete the pipeline.
Why it matters: As we reported earlier this week, some allies are worried that Biden is shaky about Putin’s Nord Stream 2 pipeline, and the battle is a key test of whether the new president’s harsh rhetoric against Russia will be linked by action.
- Russian opponents, including top officials in the Ukrainian and Polish governments, are worried that Biden does not want to face Angela Merkel and that the Germans will not incur serious costs.
- And members of Congress – both Republicans and Democrats – were impressed by a report recently sent to Congress by the Biden State Department, which targeted only one Russian ship for sanctions. The Trump administration has already approved that ship, the Fortuna.
Behind the scenes: The first call between senior State Department officials and Republican and Democratic National House and Senate security personnel took place Tuesday.
- The Tuesday call was classified and took place from a safe room. A source on the call and two other sources informed about the conversation said the interrogation focused on why the Biden government did not target a larger number of ships for sanctions, as the assistants argued that sea detection a number of additional ships are working on the pipeline.
- The call lasted about half an hour until the line suddenly fell dead at the end of the Department of Foreign Affairs. While some Republicans initially thought they were hooked, the State Department said it was a technical problem.
Then, on Thursday at 14:00, the State Department officials convened again for a second briefing, this time not classified, with senior staff from the offices of the House and Senate.
- According to three sources who participated, this call was controversial. Increasing hostility comes from Republican officials who were not happy with the answers. It seems that Biden’s officials are trying to avoid polite conflict.
At one point during the call, a Republican Senate aide asked Biden officials why they had not approved the Nord Stream 2 AG – the company responsible for building the pipeline.
- State Department officials replied that they were not going to discuss specific entities and that they were still investigating the facts and compiling the evidence.
“We’re talking about the company that owns Nord Stream 2,” the Republican official said sharply according to the three sources on the call. “I’m currently on their website and they identify themselves as the company responsible for the planning, construction and operation of the pipeline.”
- “You have determined that sanctioning activities have taken place in relation to the pipeline,” the official continued. “What kind of information will you need to get to confirm yourself that the company that manages the operation you just approved is engaged in sanctioning activities?”
Civil servants dispute that the general tone of the call was hostile, claiming that they later heard from congressional staff describing the briefing as helpful.
- They argued that it could take a long time to determine which entities are sanctioned, and reiterated that the Biden government plans to use all available tools to stop the completion of the pipeline.
During the call, Molly Montgomery, the Deputy Assistant Secretary in the Bureau of European and Eurasian Affairs, denied that the US is negotiating with Germany on a possible side agreement to continue the pipeline.
- Reuters reported on Friday, citing a German government spokesman, that there was an exchange of words between the US government and Germany regarding the Nord Stream 2 pipeline to take Russian gas to Europe. ‘The report contains no further details.
- State Department officials claim that the word “exchange” should not be considered a negotiation and that Biden’s government, during normal diplomatic talks, registered its concerns about the pipeline with the Germans.
A Senior Assistant to the Senate also defended the Biden government against the charges that they are moving slowly and softly, saying there is dual opposition to the pipeline, but the government must “ensure that any sanction meets a standard of proof that can rise in court.”
- “The time is short and they are under gun,” the assistant said, “but I think they are trying to avoid the clown-car approach of the last government, which did things like the Russian company Rusal, but had to return it after them, the world market for aluminum almost collapsed. ‘
- “Measuring twice to cut once is always a good policy,” the assistant added, “especially if there is a sense of urgency to get it right.”
- Yes, but: The Trump administration only removed Rusal from its sanctions list after a black oligarch and Putin, Oleg Deripaska, followed a commitment to sell his majority stake in the company.
IDP congress staff asked the Biden officials to update the report they had already submitted to Congress with new bodies to be approved, but the government officials did not commit to it.
- One of the Biden officials told the congressional staff that if they have more information about entities involved, they should say what it is. Earlier this month, two members of the House Foreign Affairs Committee sent a letter to Foreign Minister Antony Blinken naming these alleged vessels.
- In the newly approved defense bill, Congress instructed the government to approve a wide range of activities involved in the pipeline.
The whole picture: Pipeline construction was halted during the Trump administration after Congress imposed sanctions on a 2019 bill and issued top-level aggressive threats to top Trump officials, including Secretary of State Mike Pompeo.
- But the Russians resumed construction on Nord Stream 2 after Biden entered service.
The conclusion: The pipeline is more than 90% complete and can be completed by the summer without any intervention.