MOSCOW, April 9. /TASS/. Russian President Vladimir Putin and German Chancellor Angela Merkel confirmed positions of both countries in respect of the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline project in a telephone conversation, press service of the Kremlin said on Monday.

"The position of Russia and Germany in respect of implementation of a major mutually beneficial project in the gas sphere, the Nord Stream 2, was confirmed," the press service said.

Germany issued all the permits for implementation of this project in the territory of the country by the end of March 2018. The Nord Stream 2 pipeline is expected to come into service at the end of 2019. The pipeline is set to run from the Russian coast along the Baltic Sea bed to the German shore. Each of the pipeline’s two stretches will have a capacity of 27.5 bln cubic meters. The new pipeline will double the capacity of the first stretch and will basically follow its route.