Even as Kiev’s Foreign Minister Dmitry Kuleba condemned the German “addiction” to Russian gas on Friday, the Ukrainian transit operator said it was willing to carry all the Russian energy Berlin might need, for a fee. The conflicting communications from Kiev came after a senior Bundestag official called for the opening of the Nord Stream 2 pipeline, and as Gazprom informed the EU that Nord Stream 1 would shut down for maintenance at the end of August.
“Calls by some German politicians to launch NS2 for a little while and close it later are totally irrational,” Kuleba tweeted out on Friday, in English. “This resembles drug addiction, when a person says ‘Just one last time!’ without realizing the devastating consequences of each ‘last time.’ Addiction to Russian gas kills!”
While Kuleba did not name any names, a prominent German politician did in fact call for the opening of Nord Stream 2. Wolfgang Kubicki, a Bundestag vice-president from the ranks of the Free Democrats (FDP), said on Thursday that the brand-new pipeline ought to be used to at least fill up Germany’s gas storage for the winter.
“There is no good reason not to open Nord Stream 2,” Kubicki told the broadcaster RND. “If more gas is delivered to us this way, maybe even the entire amount guaranteed by the contract, it will help people not to freeze in winter, and our industry will not suffer serious damage.”
READ MORE: Top German politician makes Nord Stream 2 plea
Last month, several mayors of towns on the German island of Ruegen wrote to Berlin demanding a review of the energy policy and suggesting using NS2.