Berlin, July 20 - Neftegaz.RU. The Federation of German Industries (BDI) condemned the U.S.
sanctions threat against companies involved in the
Nord Stream 2 project as a "serious strain on transatlantic relations" on July 17, Xinhua reported.
The sanctions threatened by the U.S. would "create an increased legal security and investment risk for around 120 large and small companies from 12 countries," said BDI Director General Joachim Lang, who feared that consumer gas prices in Europe could rise as a result.
Oliver Hermes, chairman of the German Committee on Eastern
European Economic Relations, also described the threat of immediate U.S. sanctions as an "incredible low point in transatlantic relations."
The U.S. was "using sanctions without restraint to assert its own economic interests," Hermes said, adding that the European Commission would need to "quickly present a tough catalogue of measures to this end."
BDI believes that the sanctions threat was "contrary to international law" and also expected "clear diplomatic reactions from the EU and the member states concerned."
Uniper, a German energy company involved in financing the pipeline project, told the German business newspaper Handelsblatt on July 16 that the company had noted "with regret" that
the U.S. was aiming to "interfere with an important infrastructure project which we believe is important for European energy security."
The U.S. had attempted in the past to prevent the completion of Nord Stream 2 with sanctions. In 2019, U.S. President
Donald Trump slapped sanctions on all companies involved in construction, which led to a suspension of construction.
