Should Denmark allow the Russian company to lay the pipeline in Danish territorial waters?
This question for some time is the subject of debate, but soon the Danish government needs to make a decision. According to the news DR Nyheder, for weeks on the table of the government will be a formal request from Gazprom, which is owned by the Russian government. The company wants to build a pipeline, the so-called “Northern stream — 2”.
We offer a brief overview of the subject matter and try to explain why the “Nord stream — 2” is causing a headache to the Danish government.
What is the issue?
The pipeline will give the Russian company “Gazprom” the opportunity to export more gas to the European market.
If plans for the construction of the pipeline will become a reality, it will be laid under the Baltic sea from Russia to the West of St. Petersburg to Northern Germany. Total length of gas pipeline under the Baltic sea is 1200 km.
This means that the pipeline will pass through Danish, Finnish, German and Swedish territorial waters, so the above countries must approve the project. Regarding Denmark, here we are talking about 140 km of Maritime territory by Bornholm, which previously saw for themselves a great opportunity to earn money by taking on the role of the auxiliary port for the storage of gas pipes. Port of Ronne (Rønne), however, is not relevant because Sweden has approved plans for the conversion of Karlshamn (Karlshamn) to the main port and thus saved the Danish government from having to make a decision on this issue, which in itself was good.
The first “Nord stream” was built in 2000-ies. In 2009, fresh-baked Prime Minister Lars løkke Rasmussen (Left party) approved the project, but since then the attitude of politicians towards Russia has changed, and therefore, not the fact that a positive decision will be made at this time.
Why the “Nord stream — 2″ — dilemma for the government?
The Danish government will determine the position in a complex political game.
On the one hand, Russia, the economy of which the “Nord stream — 2” will be good for you. Therefore, a possible agreement on the implementation of the project will be partly a question of confidence in the government of President Putin. Meanwhile, recently, defense Minister Claus Frederiksen yort (Claus Hjort Frederiksen, the Left party) has declared that “Russia is behaving in an aggressive foreign policy”.
On the other hand, the EU, in which there is a split in relation to plans for the construction of the pipeline. Some countries, such as Germany, believe that the project should be regarded as purely commercial, as a private matter in which to intervene is not necessary. Other countries, primarily in Eastern Europe, are opposed to the construction of the pipeline. Their reasoning is that here we are talking about politics and the risk of strengthening of Russian domination.
What politicians say?
In an interview with DR Nyheder speakers of the social Democrats and radicals on external Affairs Nick Haekkerup (Nick Hækkerup) and Martin Lidegaard (Martin Lidegaard) criticized the government for something it has not provided the EU sufficient pressure that the European Union said the draft “no.”
Both politicians are opponents of the construction of the pipeline. Their argument boils down to, that would be pretty strange if the construction of “Nord stream — 2” is approved, as against Russia sanctions.
In the newspaper Politiken the former Chairman of the Left party and ex-foreign Minister Uffe Ellemann-Jensen warned the government from the unilateral approval for the construction of Russian gas pipeline.
The speaker for foreign policy of the Danish people’s party søren Jespersen (Søren Espersen), in contrast, believes that the project should be seen as “quite ordinary trading transaction”.
According to the former Prime Minister from the Left party and former Secretary General of NATO, Anders Fogh Rasmussen, the approval of the construction of the pipeline will be “perfect madness”. However, it should be noted that today the fog — the adviser of the President of Ukraine. If the “Nord stream — 2” will be built, Ukraine runs the risk of incurring large economic losses, because today the country earns money on the transportation of Russian gas to Europe.
A few months ago, the representative of the Left party, Minister of climate and energy, Lars Christian Lilleholt (Lars Christian Lilleholt) together with his Swedish colleague sent a letter to the European Commission, which was asked to formulate the organization’s position, but Ministers have not yet received.
