"U.S. attempt to stop Nord Stream-2 fails"

U.S. President Donald Trump's statement on the Nord Stream-2 project is a pragmatic and reasonable political decision, the head of the Russian State Duma Committee on Energy, president of the Russian Gas Society Pavel Zavalny said, drawing attention to the obvious failure of Washington's attempt to influence the project.

"Obviously, a rather vigorous attempt to pressure on companies and states interested in the project, primarily on the German government, an attempt to politicize a commercial project in its essence has failed. It is evidenced by the statements of the German leadership, including Chancellor Angela Merkel, at various sites, even in the Baltics, where the position on the project is different," RIA Novosti cited Zavalny as saying.

Speaking at a joint news conference with Poland's President Andrzej Duda on Tuesday, Trumps said that the U.S. was not looking to sanction companies that participated in Russia’s Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline project. Earlier, U.S. Energy Secretary Rick Perry said that the United States could impose sanctions on a new Russia-Germany gas pipeline.

The German government said that Berlin sees the proposed Nord Stream 2 pipeline as a private venture but wants clarity on the implications for Ukraine.

"We are aware of the comments and see no reason to comment,” German government spokeswoman Ulrike Demmer said on Wednesday. "The chancellor’s position on Nord Stream 2 is that it is primarily a commercial project but naturally we need clarity on the future transit role of Ukraine," Reuters cited her as saying.

Deputy director of energy policy of the Institute of Energy and Finances, Alexey Belogoriev, speaking to Vestnik Kavkaza, noted that Trump's decision is not so much a softening of his position on Russian pipeline projects, but a pause in the fight against them. "It is unprofitable for the Trump administration to politically exacerbate the Nord Stream 2 situation. Since the European political elite, Germany in particular, has said for more than a year at all levels that the sanctions against European companies would further worsen the already difficult relations between Washington and Brussels," he stressed.

The expert expressed confidence that in the future pressure on European companies associated with the Nord Stream-2 project will continue. "It will be at the level of indirect constraints of companies. In addition,Trump does not want to burn all bridges with Russia," Alexei Belogoriev said.

"The US is trying to persuade Russia and Saudi Arabia to raise quotas for oil production to nullify the OPEC+ agreement in order to compensate for those volumes of Iranian oil that will leave the market by the end of the year in connection with the imposition of sanctions. And a year later, when the North Stream-2 will be built, it will be a completely different story," the deputy director of energy policy of the Institute of Energy and Finances concluded.