OREANDA-NEWS. On the eve of US President Joe Biden's speech at the Munich International Security Conference, former German Foreign Minister Sigmar Gabriel rejected US criticism of the construction of the «Nord Stream – 2» gas pipeline.

«From the point of view of European sovereignty, this does not concern the United States at all. I believe that this decision is European — with all the chances and risks. It is not American», he said in an interview with the newspaper «Die Welt», published on Thursday, February 18. Gabriel stressed, that this project is carried out in accordance with European rules and laws.

Gabriel, who heads the NGO «Atlantic Bridge», created to strengthen relations between the United States and Germany in all areas, recalled that the administration of the new American President Joe Biden recently stopped the construction of the «Keystone XL» gas pipeline from Canada and now increasingly relies on environmentally harmful shale gas production. «However, this is a matter for the Americans, not the Europeans», he said.

The United States is trying to disrupt the construction of «Nord Stream – 2», citing the fact, that the new gas pipeline will only increase the dependence of Germany and Europe on Russia in the field of gas supplies. This position is also supported by a number of European countries, including Ukraine and Poland. At the same time, supporters of the gas pipeline construction say, that the United States simply wants to sell it's own liquefied gas to Europe, which will be more expensive than Russian gas.