On July 15, the US State Department revised its guidance concerning the applicability of pipeline sanctions contained in section 232 of the Countering America’s Adversaries Through Sanctions Act (CAATSA) explicitly to include the Nord Stream II pipeline project as falling within the scope of the sanctions that can be imposed under the Act. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo announced the measure, noting that the Nord Stream II pipeline, which is nearing completion, threatens to give Moscow economic and political leverage over Europe and undermines EU energy security. The revised guidance also called out the second line of TurkStream, another pipeline project by Russian company Gazprom that connects Russia to Turkey through the Black Sea, for onward transmission to Europe.
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Brian O’Toole, Daniel Fried: US opens door to Nord Stream II sanctions
Men work at the construction site of the so-called Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline in Lubmin, northeastern Germany, on March 26, 2019.
