The appeal was signed by, among others, Timothy Garton Ash from the University of Oxford, former Prime Minister of the Republic of Poland Jerzy Buzek, Francis Fukuyama from Stanford University, former US Army Commander in Europe Ben Hodges, former Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine Paweł Klimkin, Edward Lucas from the Center for European Policy Analysis, and former US ambassador to Russia Alexander Vershbow.
We are reaching out to you to urge that you declare an immediate moratorium on the natural gas pipeline Nord Stream 2. There are many reasons for this step. Nord Stream 2
- undermines European cohesion and transatlantic relations;
- conflicts with the new European and German climate goals;
- threatens the already precarious security of Ukraine and
- runs counter to the aim of a common EU external energy policy.
The Nord Stream 2 project was controversial right from the start. The agreements were signed shortly after the annexation of Crimea and the Russian intervention in eastern Ukraine.
The undeclared war against Ukraine continues, while the crackdown on democratic civil society in Russia grows ever more oppressive. There has also been a whole series of attacks on the liberal democracies of the West. The hopes for “Wandel durch Handel” (change through trade) have not been realized.
[...]
A moratorium for Nord Stream 2 offers a way out of a muddled political situation. It represents a chance to arrive at a common European position. Lastly, and importantly, a moratorium would serve as a clear signal to the Russian leadership that they must expect consequences to ensue from their continuing violations of international law and of the rules upon which the European order is based.
