To threaten European businesses "with sanctions. if they take part in or finance natural gas projects like the Nord Stream II (gas pipeline) brings a completely new and very negative flavour to the European-US relationship", they said. Germany and Austria's open criticism of the United States plans to impose new sanctions on Russia proves that the Western Europe has grown exhausted of the USA sanctions policy, Deputy Chairman of the Russian Federation Council (upper house of parliament) Committee for Foreign Affairs Vladimir Dzhabarov told TASS.
According to the statement, the USA legislation concerns "sales of U.S. liquefied gas and squeezing Russian natural gas supplies in the European market", aiming to ensure "work in the oil and gas industry in the United States".
With several major European companies involved in building the new Nord Stream pipeline, they said "we can't accept the threat of illegal and extraterritorial sanctions against European companies" posed by the Senate bill.
German Foreign Minister Sigmar Gabriel and Austrian Chancellor Christian Kern said in a joint statement the sanctions would help secure USA energy jobs and threaten Russian gas deliveries to Europe.
Two years ago, European Baltic nations aired misgivings because the pipeline would lie on the seabed, bypassing their territories. The measures were attached to a bill targeting Iran.
Annual Congressional baseball game brings unity after shooting
The game at Nationals Park carried on a century-old bipartisan ritual, this one tinged with worry about Louisiana Rep. They also signed oversized cards sending well wishes to those who were injured in the shooting, including Rep.
Top Senate Democrat Chuck Schumer said the add-on was meant to stop "Russia's meddling in our election" and give Congress the final say should President Donald Trump in the future want to ease sanctions, originally imposed by former president Barack Obama.
Schumer wants Trump overruled, should he want to lift sanctions.
The government spokesman added it was "strange" that sanctions meant to punish Russian Federation for meddling in the US elections could also lead to penalties against European companies.
The White House subsequently stated that existing sanctions against Russian Federation were effective enough. The United States recently started shipping liquified natural gas to Poland and has ambitions to cultivate other European customers.
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