OREANDA-NEWS. Germany and France will not mind if the United States joins the Normandy Format, Oleg Krasnitsky, told acting director of the Third European Department of the Russian Foreign Ministry. According to him, Moscow admits that Washington may join the settlement of the situation in Ukraine within the framework of the Normandy format, as they «really influence» Kiev.

«There are no contraindications to the involvement of the United States, since they really affect Ukraine, and a lot depends on Washington's position in the settlement of the Ukrainian conflict», Krasnitsky said. He also stressed that Moscow also stands for Washington's influence on Kiev if the American authorities are really ready to make a positive contribution to resolving the conflict.

Earlier, Krasnitsky expressed hope that the certification of the Nord Stream — 2 will be completed in the spring. According to him, an independent operator should be created in Germany, which will take over the German section of the gas pipeline. Most likely, the terms of certification will change in the process, but Russia still expects its completion in the spring of 2022.

Earlier, a representative of the German Ministry of Economy said that the certification of Nord Stream — 2 is now suspended, it is possible to put the gas pipeline into operation only after the completion of this process. The official representative of the German Cabinet of Ministers, Steffen Seibert, added that he did not want to speculate on the issue of Nord Stream — 2, recalling that Berlin's position is known.