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Nord Stream 2 should complement, not replace, gas transit through Ukraine - Merkel

16 July 2021 06:29 (UTC +04:00)

Nord Stream 2 pipeline should be a supplement to gas transit through Ukraine, not replace it entirely; another development will create tensions, German Chancellor Angela Merkel said late on Thursday in Washington after a meeting with US President Joe Biden, APA reports citing TASS.

"We talked about Russia and Ukraine in connection with Nord Stream 2. We have different assessments of what this project implies. But I want to say clearly: our understating was and still is that Ukraine remains a transit country," she said.

"For me, Nord Stream 2 is a supplementary project, not a project instead of gas transit through Ukraine. Anything else would cause more tension. We are negotiating how we can make this clear together," she said.

Merkel also added that Ukraine has the right to territorial integrity and Berlin is working on this as part of the Normandy format.