Political scientist Kamkin said that Nord Stream 2 became a hostage of the Normandy format
Photo: Maxim Shemetov / Reuters
The Russian gas pipeline Nord Stream 2 has become hostage to the stillborn Normandy format to resolve the Ukrainian crisis. Alexander Kamkin, a leading researcher at the Center for German Studies at the Institute of Europe of the Russian Academy of Sciences, stated this in an interview with Lenta.ru.
According to him, the negotiations on the Minsk agreements have stalled largely due to the fault of Ukraine, but the European participants in the format – France and Germany – prefer to pretend that they do not notice the destructive position of Kiev. The political scientist stressed that the Normandy format has actually ceased to fulfill its function and has no further prospects, but there is no alternative platform yet.
“If Russia unilaterally withdraws [from the talks], which Kiev is clearly seeking, then our Western partners can use this as a casus belli for another round of economic counteraction,” Kamkin said. According to him, Russia remains tied to a “talk between the dumb and the deaf,” as Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov called the dialogue with the West, although over the years of the negotiation process, Moscow and Kiev have not moved a single step towards resolving the situation in eastern Ukraine. .
Earlier, German Vice Chancellor Habek allowed the influence of the geopolitical situation on the launch of Nord Stream 2. At the same time, he noted that the certification of Nord Stream-2 will take place exclusively in accordance with the legislation of the European Union. Prior to that, on February 8, US President Joe Biden, following negotiations with Scholz, promised to stop the launch of the Russian gas pipeline in the event of Russia's “invasion” of Ukraine.
