"The US is seeking to throw sand in the wheels of the project, in no way standing with the European Union, guided by its own economic interests, trying to hinder implementation of the Nord Stream 2 project. If one takes a look at the way (the US) President is seeking to promote sanctions it gets clear that the issue is about American LNG sales to the European market regardless of whether its standards meet Europe’s gas processing facilities," he said.

ST. PETERSBURG, May 25. /TASS/. The resistance against Nord Stream 2 natural gas pipeline project relates to economic interests of competitors, including the United States, ex-chancellor of Germany and head of board of directors of Nord Stream 2 (operator of the project) Gerhard Schroeder said at the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum on Friday.

Meanwhile, Schroeder hopes that the European Union (EU) will be able to withstand the US and protect the project.

"The US is giving us new examples of sleight and manipulation, though their actions will not go unanswered. Hopefully, the EU will find a nerve to maintain its commitment to the project and will not follow America’s line," he stressed.

According to the top manager, Europe needs the project not only from the viewpoint of energy security, but also for employment generation. He added that preparatory works for pipeline construction completed last week.

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 that is expected to connect the Russian resource base with European customers, will double the capacity of the first line and will basically follow its route. The cost of construction of the Nord Stream-2 is estimated at 9.5 bln euros.