WASHINGTON
– U.S. Senator Bob Menendez (D-N.J.), Chairman of the Senate
Foreign Relations Committee, was joined by his
counterparts from Estonia, Czech Republic, Ireland, Latvia,
Poland, Ukraine, the United Kingdom, and Lithuania in issuing the following joint
statement in opposition to the recent agreement between the United States and
Germany to allow the completion of the Nord Stream 2 pipeline:
“We, the Chairs of Foreign
Affairs Committees of our respective national parliaments, continue to
oppose the Nord Stream 2 pipeline project and with regret note
the recent decision of the United States and Germany on Nord Stream
2, which entails resuming completion of the pipeline. “We
consider Nord Stream 2 a geopolitical project geared towards expanding
Russia's influence on Europe by dominating the energy market. The completion
of the pipeline will strengthen the impact of Russian gas in the European
energy mix, endanger the national security of EU member states and the
United States, and threaten the already precarious security and sovereignty
of Ukraine. “Moreover,
the completion of NS2 will give Russia yet another tool to pressure and
blackmail Ukraine. It continues to face Russia's brutal aggression and
military occupation of its territories because of its pro-European choice. As
a result, over 14,000 Ukrainians have died, and every week, more Ukrainian
soldiers give their lives to protect their homeland and entire Europe. The
EU and United States must work together to increase sanctions pressure on the
Kremlin to counter aggression in Ukraine. “The
likely repercussion of the completion and operation of Nord Stream 2 is to
undermine the development of a single, liberalized, and open European market
by consolidating sources of supply in the Nord Stream 2 system and deterring
investment in alternatives. We expect a clear commitment from Germany to
reduce dependency on gas imported from Russia and move towards green energy.
We presume that Germany will handle its responsibility towards these goals
with the utmost dedication. We need to make a collective commitment to
increase support to the security and defence capabilities of Ukraine in
order to prevent a deepening of the current security crisis, exacerbated
by the threats created by Nord Stream 2. “In
the changing security environment in the region, we call for commitments from
NATO to strengthen deterrence, especially on the Eastern Flank from the
Baltic Sea to the Black Sea. We also need to commit to delivering a
road map for Ukraine's path towards joining the NATO alliance, if
Ukraine makes the necessary reforms and meets NATO membership
standards. To consolidate the transformation efforts of the Ukrainian
government as well as democracy and human rights in the region, we call for a
European Union membership perspective to be agreed upon for Ukraine. “We
insist that any further agreements on Nord Stream 2 necessitate consultations
across the transatlantic family. Moreover, such diplomacy should happen with
the fundamental principle in mind - countering malign Russian aggression is
in all of NATO's, all EU members, and our partners in Central and Eastern
Europe vital national security interests.”
The joint statement was
signed by:
Sen. Bob
Menendez
Chairman of the Foreign
Relations Committee
United States Senate
Marko Mihkelson
Chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee
The Riigikogu of
the Republic of Estonia
Ondrej Veselý
Chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee
The Parliament of the Czech Republic
Pavel Fischer
Chairman of the Foreign Affairs, Defence and Security
The Senate of the Parliament of the Czech Republic
Charles Flanagan
Chairman of the Foreign
Affairs Committee
The House of Oireachtas
Rihards Kols
Chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee
The Saeima of the Republic of Latvia
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Marek Kuchcinski
Chairman of the Foreign
Affairs Committee
The
Sejm of the Republic of Poland
Bogdan Klich
Chairman of the Foreign
and European Union Affairs Committee
The Senate of the
Republic of Poland
Oleksandr
Merezhko
Chairperson of the
Committee on Foreign Policy and Interparliamentary Cooperation
The
Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine
Tom
Tugendhat
Chairman
of the Foreign Affairs Committee
The House of Commons of the United Kingdom
Žygimantas Pavilionis
Chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee
The Seimas of the Republic of Lithuania
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