US Senate approves consideration of amendment with sanctions against Nord Stream 2

 Democrats in the US Senate have agreed to include in the package of amendments to the draft defense budget for the current fiscal year (which began on October 1) an initiative to impose sanctions on companies for participating in the certification of the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline. This was reported by the American newspaper The Hill, citing its sources.

Republicans on Monday blocked further adoption of the draft defense budget in the upper house, in part because of Democrats' refusal to discuss amending sanctions against the pipeline.

According to the publication, the Senate is working to reach an agreement on the adoption of the draft defense budget on Wednesday. The leadership of the factions of the two parties in the Senate is still considering whether any of the legislators will oppose the proposal and decide to block it. The package of 21 amendments to the draft budget will be voted on on 1 December. It included a number of Republican proposals, including restrictions against companies participating in the pipeline's certification. According to The Hill, the State Department tried to persuade Democrats in the Senate to block the amendment.

 As expected, after the approval of 21 amendments, the Senate will vote on the final adoption of the draft defense budget for about 770 billion dollars. As the newspaper notes, the agreement has not yet been finally approved. "We have just received a new proposal from the Democrats. We sent them a proposal earlier today <...> and so I hope we get something that will allow the process to continue, "said Senate Republican Minority Deputy Leader John Tun (South Dakota). Asked if Republicans want to vote on the amendment related to Nord Stream 2, he stressed: "This is very important."

 Construction of Nord Stream 2 was fully completed on September 10, 2021. It was originally planned to be completed by the end of 2019, but due to US restrictions, work has been delayed.

 In late September, the House of Representatives approved the draft defense budget for the current fiscal year, which includes anti-Russian legislative initiatives, including those on Nord Stream 2. The Senate has begun to consider this initiative and intends to include a number of amendments to it. After the approval of the document by the senators, the congressmen will have to approve it again, taking into account the changes made, after which the draft budget will be sent to the head of state for signature.