Nord Stream 2 ‘harms EU solidarity’: MEPs
PR dla Zagranicy
Roberto Galea
10.05.2016 16:44
The European Union should consider both the geopolitical as well economic consequences of the Nord Stream 2 project in its arguments, said members of the European Parliament in a debate on Tuesday.
Photo: Flickr.com/European Parliament
The Nord Stream 2 project is a planned gas pipeline between Russia and Germany which will circumvent Poland and the region.
Climate Action and Energy Commissioner Miguel Arias Cañete said during a debate with MEPs on Tuesday that the project “would likely change the current setup of the gas market”.
He added that the Commission had contacted the German authorities to get all the necessary facts to assess the project.
Many MEPs voiced the opinion that the project “goes against the objectives of the Energy Union, harms solidarity among EU member states and should be considered from a geopolitical as well as an economic perspective”, the European Parliament wrote in a statement.
The Visegrad Group, which comprises of Poland, the Czech Republic, Slovakia and Hungary, in March requested the European Commission to probe the planned pipeline.
The letter, a copy of which was obtained by Politico magazine, asked the commission, headed by Jean-Claude Juncker, to conduct a “rigorous assessment” of the Nord Stream 2 pipeline between Russia and Germany, which will circumvent the Visegrad Group.
The group made an official call to the European Commission to rigorously enforce its role as guardian of treaties through a thorough assessment of the conformity of the Nord Stream 2 project with the objectives of EU energy policy in a two-page letter signed by the leaders of Poland, Slovakia, the Czech Republic and Hungary. (rg)