Navalny Poisoning Amplifies Calls for Germany to End Nord Stream 2 Pipeline

German foreign minister Heiko Maas demanded an explanation from Russia regarding its alleged involvement in the poisoning of Alexei Navalny, the leader of the political opposition to Russia’s president Vladimir Putin. 

In an interview with German magazine Bild am Sonntag, Maas voiced his frustration at Russia’s lack of transparency in the case so far and raised the possibility that Germany would discuss possible retaliatory measures with its allies. Navalny suddenly fell ill during a flight to Moscow last month and received care at the Charité hospital in Berlin, where doctors now believe he suffered poisoning.

Navalny’s hospitalization has escalated already tenuous relations between Russia and Germany. So far, Maas has decided to avoid reevaluating the status of the Nord Stream 2 project, an addition to the existing gas pipeline between Russia and Germany completed in 2012, despite pressure from the United States and others to end construction on the project. Maas emphasized that he “hopes that the Russians will not force us to change our approach toward Nord Stream 2”. 

Maas also cited the detrimental effects that halting construction on the pipeline, now almost complete, would have on the approximately 50 German companies involved in its creation. Instead, Maas suggested a retribution strategy that will more closely relate to the political implications of Navalny’s poisoning.

Many German politicians have sharply criticized Maas’s reluctance to kill the Nord Stream 2 project, as well as ex-Chancellor Gerhard Schröder’s involvement in the project. Schröder is currently the chairman of the board of directors for the Russian-owned Nord Stream 2 AG, which has responsibility over the construction and administration of the project. 

The parliamentary leader of the Green Party, Katrin Göring-Eckardt, demanded that Germany immediately end construction on the pipeline and find another way to finish the project without Russia’s involvement. Johann Wadephul, deputy parliamentary leader for the Christian Democratic Union, Angela Merkel’s party, called for Schröder to immediately end his involvement with the project, which Wadephul claims Schröder has used to lobby on behalf of the Russian government.

The project also threatens the ability of American companies to export natural gas to Europe, as well as having the prospect of Russia gaining more influence over Europe’s energy supply. These factors have led to strong criticism from the U.S. government, including President Donald Trump, who threatened to impose sanctions on any company involved in the pipeline’s construction. 

Initially, German consumers did not acknowledge these criticisms, potentially because of the economic boon that would come from cheaper natural gas prices. Since Navalny’s poisoning, more Germans now oppose the pipeline, with Chancellor Merkel now facing the strongest calls yet to end a project that she has thus far staunchly defended against attacks from President Trump, German environmentalists, and other European countries. 

Only recently has this pressure resulted in the pipeline’s completion coming into question, after Merkel and her cabinet acknowledged that they would consider sanctions against the Russian pipeline for the poisoning of Navalny.

This debate will likely continue well past the project’s expected completion date of 2021, even if Germany and the United States both eventually defer to Russia and allow for the pipeline’s completion. Since President Trump faces an uncertain reelection and Chancellor Merkel already announced plans not seek another term in 2021, the fate of Nord Stream 2 may end up in the hands of a completely different group of future leaders.