据路透社柏林报道,德国一位资深外交官上周四表示,尽管美国的反对和国内日益增长的担忧,但德国仍应完成俄罗斯支持北溪-2天然气管道项目,且未来的能源项目应由欧盟协调。
慕尼黑安全会议主席沃尔夫冈·辛格表示,110亿美元项目最初的“出生缺陷”是,欧洲条约允许德国政府将该项目视为纯粹的商业项目。
事实上,他告诉记者,很明显,这样一个大型项目显然具有政治性质,特别是考虑到俄罗斯在2014年吞并乌克兰的克里米亚地区以及近年来的其他行动。
这条管道将把天然气通过波罗的海直接输送到德国,但在某些地区受到了批评,因为它将剥夺乌克兰利润丰厚的天然气运输费用,从而有可能使乌克兰未来更加脆弱。
自莫斯科吞并克里米亚以来,德国和俄罗斯一直存在分歧,但两国在这条管道上有着共同的利益,这条管道将使目前管线的产能增加一倍。
俄罗斯天然气巨头俄罗斯天然气工业股份公司正与西方合作伙伴—德国能源集团Uniper、德国油气公司温特豪尔、Engie能源集团、奥地利石油天然气集团OMV和壳牌联手建设该项目。
辛格提醒称,不要在2019年底项目完成之时放弃这个项目,理由是德国外交政策的重点是一致性和可持续性,现在说放弃该项目将不利于德国的外交政策。
本周,美国驻柏林大使理查德·格雷内尔因告诉参与该项目的德国公司,如果他们继续实施已经深入的计划,他们可能会受到制裁。
德国表示,美国对北溪-2项目的制裁是解决这一争端的错误方式。
詹晓晶 摘自 路透社
原文如下:
Germany should stick to Nord Stream 2 project - MSC chairman
Germany should finish the Russian-backed Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline despite U.S. opposition and growing domestic concerns, but future energy projects should be coordinated by the European Union, a veteran German diplomat said on Thursday.
Wolfgang Ischinger, chairman of the Munich Security Conference, said the initial "birth defect" of the $11 billion project was the fact that European treaties had allowed the German government to deem the project as purely commercial.
n fact, he told reporters, it was clear that such a large project clearly had a political nature, particularly given Russia's annexation of the Crimea region of Ukraine in 2014 and other actions in recent years.
he pipeline, which would carry gas straight to Germany under the Baltic Sea, has been criticised in some quarters because it would deprive Ukraine of lucrative gas transit fees, potentially making Kiev more vulnerable in the future.
Germany and Russia have been at odds since Moscow annexed Crimea, but both countries have a common interest in the pipeline, which will double capacity of the current route.
Russian gas giant Gazprom is building the project jointly with Western partners Uniper, Wintershall , Engie, OMV and Shell.
Ischinger cautioned against abandoning the project as it neared its completion date of late 2019, citing German foreign policy's focus on consistency and sustainability. "Saying 'forget it' now would not be good German foreign policy."
The U.S. ambassador in Berlin, Richard Grenell, drew fire this week for telling German companies involved in the project that they could face sanctions if they continued with the plan that is already far advanced.
Germany says U.S. sanctions against Nord Stream 2 would be the wrong way to solve the dispute.