Russia also may be on the defensive as leading German conservatives start to question Nord Stream 2

Russia also may be on the defensive as leading German conservatives start to question Nord Stream 2, the $9 billion Russia to Germany gas pipeline. “There is no talk of stopping [gas] transit through Ukraine with the entry into operation of Nord Stream 2,” Dmitry Peskov, Russia’s presidential spokesman, tells reporters Tuesday. “This position was repeatedly voiced by President Putin.” Ukraine gas transit system earns the country $3 billion a year in revenue and gives it some leverage over its massive eastern neighbor.