Republicans in the US Senate are confident that in January the vast majority of members of this chamber will vote in favor of approving the bill proposed by their ally Ted Cruz (from Texas) for sanctions against Nord Stream-2, writes the American. newspaper Politico, citing its own sources.
"We will win this vote by a huge majority," the source said. 60 votes are needed to pass the bill. To that end, Republicans will need to win the support of at least 10 Democrats to pass the upper house initiative. According to Politico, a number of Democrats support the bill. The initiative will also have to be approved by the House of Representatives, after which it will be submitted for signature by the country's president.
The Cruz bill obliges the Washington administration to impose sanctions on the pipeline within 15 days of its approval, and also allows Congress to vote to re-impose restrictions if the US president decides to lift them. Restrictions, according to the bill, will be introduced with regard to the organizations responsible for the design, construction and operation of the gas pipeline, as well as with regard to a number of their employees. Sanctions include a ban on entering the United States, as well as a freeze on US assets and a ban on US citizens or companies doing business with blacklisted people.
In December, US senators agreed to consider Cruz's proposed bill on sanctions for the pipeline, which must be voted on in the upper house of Congress no later than January 14. However, due to the pandemic and a similar bill by Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Robert Menendez (Democrat from New Jersey), consideration may be postponed.
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