A veto-proof bipartisan majority of 64 U.S. senators introduced on Jan. 24 a resolution that would provide more assistance to Ukraine as the country resists Russia’s military pressure in the Black Sea region and construction of the Nord Stream 2 pipeline.
Following the resolution’s introduction, U.S. Sen. Ronald Johnson (Republican-Wisconsin) criticized as inadequate the West’s response to Russia’s seizure of three Ukrainian vessels along with their crews on Nov. 25. “Moscow’s action is testing Western resolve and if we fail to respond with strength, more will follow,” Johnson said in a press release. “We must not let that happen.”
Sen. Richard Durbin (Democrat-Illinois) echoed Johnson’s statement and called for U.S. President Donald J. Trump to “work with key Western allies to stop this Russian assault on democracy and Ukrainian sovereignty.”
The resolution calls for increased cooperation with NATO allies in order to plan for joint actions destined to beef up the maritime presence of Western allied forces in the Black Sea. This, in turn, would stabilize the Kerch Strait and the Azov Sea where Russia is now operating at will and claiming sovereignty over international waters.
The situation in the Kerch Strait started deteriorating since Russia has illegally invaded and unlawfully annexed Crimea in 2014. Russia soon after built a bridge linking its mainland to the peninsula over the Kerch Strait, which has de facto given them control over maritime traffic in the Azov Sea.
Sen. James Inhofe (Republican-Oklahoma) and chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, praised Ukraine for its courage fighting off Russia: “Ukraine has never asked Americans or Europeans to do their fighting for them; they have asked only that we give them the tools they need to defend themselves and their country. Ukrainians need and deserve our help.”
In addition to pressing Trump to provide more substantial support for Ukraine, the resolution insisted on the cancelation of the Nord Stream 2 pipeline – planned for completion at the end of 2019 – which is largely seen by the U.S. as a serious strategic danger for Europe.
The completion of the pipeline would increase the European Union’s dependence on Russian gas. The project will carry an additional 55 billion cubic meters to the already existing lines, bringing the total capaciy of transit to 110 billion cubic meters directly from Russia to Germany under the Baltic Sea.
Considering that Russia provided already 37 percent of Europe’s natural gas in 2017, completion of the pipeline – expected by the start of 2020 – would likely ensure Russia to become Europe’s main source.
The finalization of the pipeline could also have disastrous consequences on the Ukrainian economy. Currently, the transit of Russian natural gas through Ukraine’s land-based pipelines is worth up to $3 billion yearly for Ukraine, 2 percent of the gross domestic product.
Even though the European Parliament has unanimously passed a resolution condemning the construction of Nord Stream 2 on Dec. 11 as well as Russia’s aggression in the Kerch Strait, Russia and Germany say they are going ahead with the pipeline.
