Naftogaz CEO Pressing U.S. to Block Nord Stream 2 Completion
- Vitrenko says finishing pipeline would be victory for Putin
- Additional sanctions have bipartisan support in Congress
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The head of the Ukraine’s state-owned oil and gas company was in Washington this week to deliver a message to U.S. lawmakers that allowing the completion of the Nord Stream 2 pipeline would be a victory for Russian President Vladimir Putin and a blow to American credibility in Eastern Europe.
“It would mean that this pro-Russian narrative would advance at the expense of the West,” Yuriy Vitrenko, the chief executive officer of Naftogaz Ukraine, said in an interview. “Many people will see that guys like Putin can get their way with the bullying of the West. And it will encourage people like Putin everywhere in the world to use the same kind of tactic.”