WASHINGTON: US President Joe Biden raised his concerns to visiting German Chancellor Angela Merkel over the Nord Stream2 gas pipeline project, warning Russia not to weaponise the energy. The 1,230-km gas pipeline, which is expected to be fulfilled in August, would bring natural gas from Russia to Germany through the Baltic Sea, as per reports..

Biden said to media on Thursday: "I reiterated my concerns about Nord Stream 2 with Merkel at the White House. "Merkel and I are absolutely united in our conviction that Russia must not be allowed to use energy as a weapon to coerce or threaten its neighbours," he said. The US has long claimed that the project was a geopolitical manoeuver by Russia that will undermine Ukraine's role in transiting energy to Europe. Germany and Russia pointed out that the project is purely commercial.

The US and Germany have different assessments regarding the Nord Stream 2, Merkel said at the conference, while stressing both agree that Ukraine will remain a transit country for natural gas. "We will be actively acting should Russia not respect this right of Ukraine that it as a transit country. "The Nord Stream 2 is an additional project and certainly not a project to replace any kind of transit through Ukraine," Merkel said.

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