"I don’t believe that there will be any sanctions that are being considered right now. It certainly has been part of the discussion — concern about Nord Stream 2", Murkowski said Monday. "But I am not aware that there has been anything proposed that we would be acting on".
The senator added that she has concerns about Russia "utilizing its resource wealth as a political leverage". The United States has expressed its opposition to the Nord Stream 2 project on numerous occasions, claiming that it was the means of alleged political control used by Russia to exert pressure on the European Union.
READ MORE: US Pushing Own Interests in EU When Blasting Nord Stream 2 — Bavaria Minister
The Russian authorities, in turn, argued that the US attitude toward the Nord Stream 2 project was explained by the desire to promote Washington's economic and energy interests in Europe and rejected the idea that the project might be political in its nature.
International Energy Agency (IEA) Executive Director Fatih Birol told Sputnik on the sidelines of the annual CERAWeek energy conference in Houston on Monday that the implementation of the Nord Stream 2 is for Russia and the participating countries in Europe to decide.
"North Stream 2 is, of course, between Russia and the countries in the region," Birol said. "They need to decide what does it bring in terms of economic growth, the energy mix, diversification and also the security of energy supplies between them".
READ MORE: US Intervention in Nord Stream 2 Will 'Skew' Market, Hurt Investment — Journo
Nord Stream 2 has been welcomed by some countries in Europe, while others — primarily the United States — have raised concerns over alleged danger of Europe's energy dependence on Russia and the subsequent diminished transit role of Ukraine.
