Despite the fact that a number of European countries oppose the gas pipeline project 'Nord Stream-2', right now they are not able to convince both Germany and the European Commission, which do not intend to create any obstacles to its implementation, a researcher of Carnegie Foundation Europe and chief editor of the Strategic Europe blog Judy Dempsey believes.
She notes that Berlin continues to support this project, despite the fact that Germany is one of the most consistent European critics of the Russian Federation and a supporter of sanctions against Moscow, and Angela Merkel has long ago abandoned the so-called "eastern policy" (Ostpolitik), carried out by her predecessors for over 30 years, through which German leaders tried to build friendly relations with Russia for decades.
According to Dempsey, the attitude of the German leadership to the Russian gas project shows that national interests are more important than the plans to create a unified European energy union, which raises concerns among some other Europeans. Among them is the new conservative Polish government, led by the 'Law and Justice' party, dissatisfied by the project 'Nord Stream-2' itself, and the behavior of Germany. "Warsaw believes that the construction of 'Nord Stream-2' will become the forerunner to the establishment of a German-Russian alliance at the expense of the interests of Poland, Ukraine and other Eastern European countries," - RIA Novosti quotes the analyst as saying.
Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi, who criticizes Germany for its inconsistency, also opposed this, pointing out the fact that 'Nord Stream' received the support of the German authorities, but Berlin did not approve the 'South Stream', in the implementation of which Italian oil company ENI was supposed to participate, and eventually the project was ended.
Judy Dempsey notes that during the Ukrainian crisis Angela Merkel was able to unite the European Union and convince it to work out a consolidated position concerning Russia. But now, because of her support for 'Nord Stream-2', she risks re-dividing the bloc. "At the same time, Merkel is not prepared to abandon the project that threatens this unity," the analyst thinks.
