(FILES) In this file photo taken on March 23, 2018 Germany's Chancellor Angela Merkel speaks during a joint press conference with French president on the second day of a summit of European Union (EU) leaders in Brussels. AFP / Ludovic MARIN
BERLIN: German Chancellor Angela Merkel said on Tuesday the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline cannot go ahead without clarity on Ukraine's role as a gas transit route, appearing to harden her stance towards the project.
"I made very clear that a Nord Stream 2 project is not possible without clarity on the future transit role of Ukraine," she told a joint news conference in Berlin with Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko.
"So you can see that it is not just an economic issue but there are also political considerations," she added.
Nord Stream 2, planned to run from Russia through the Baltic Sea to Germany, would double the existing Nord Stream pipeline's annual capacity of 55 billion cubic metres.
Eastern European and Baltic states fear the pipeline could increase reliance on Russian gas and undermine Ukraine's role as a gas transit route. Germany, along with other beneficiaries in northern Europe, has so far backed the project.
Merkel said she spoke by telephone to Russian President Vladimir Putin on Monday.
"I also said to President Putin yesterday: it cannot be that through Nord Stream 2, Ukraine has no further importance regarding the transit of gas," she added.
