Russian Foreign Intelligence Service head expecting EU states to be pragmatic about Nord Stream 2

12:20, 22.09.2020 1 min read

Russian Foreign Intelligence Service Director Sergei Naryshkin has said that the termination of the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline project would be disadvantageous for EU member states and has expressed hope that European partners will not act to the detriment of their own interests in dealing with the issue.

"Most Europeans realize that they will incur substantial losses from terminating this project. This will narrow the resource base needed for the restart of the European economy, which will see an 8.6% contraction of the GDP this year, according to Deutsche Bank's estimates," Naryshkin said in a statement seen by Interfax.

Besides, it will be more difficult to create jobs amid the coronavirus, he said.

"I do not think that the Europeans will treat the Nord Stream 2 project on the principle of 'freezing my ears off just to spite Grandma', especially as the coming winter is expected to be severe and they will need a lot of gas," Naryshkin said.