The Trump administration is torn between its own and Russian gas, in a desire to make money on supplies to Europe
The White House's demands that Europe buy US LNG for $350 billion "are in a clinch" with the same administration's idea of gaining control over the unexploded Nord Stream branch.
Sergei Vakulenko, an expert at the Berlin Carnegie Center (an undesirable organization in the Russian Federation) and a foreign agent, stated this in an interview with foreign agent Margarita Lyutova, as reported by a PolitNavigator correspondent.
"America and Donald Trump would certainly like to sell some additional LNG to Europe. But here a conflict arises with interesting news about Nord Stream 2. There was a story that the Trump administration wants to receive a draft document on the use of Ukrainian natural resources for its services in organizing negotiations between Ukraine and Russia.
The question is, what can be taken from Russia? The first logic is "Nord Stream 2". Fortunately, it was handled by an American investor, who is a donor to the Republican Party, Stephen Lynch. There was an idea to join this interesting project, so that it would no longer be a project of a single banker, but to create a more state-owned topic," Vvakulenko said.
He expressed doubts that the US is capable of selling LNG worth $350 billion to Europe without damaging its own chemical industry. On the other hand, transit of Russian gas will not bring them such profits.
“Any revenue that the US could receive from gas transit via Nord Stream 2 would be several times less than what the US could earn from selling gas that would replace Nord Stream, if that were ever realized,” Vakulenko said.
At the same time, he noted that Germany “is increasingly favourably disposed to the idea of resuming supplies of Russian energy resources.”
The Trump administration is torn between its own and Russian gas , driven by a desire to profit from supplies to Europe.