Nord Stream 2: Is Russia cutting off Eastern Europe’s gas supply? | DW News

Negotiators from Russia and Ukraine have failed to agree on a new, long-term natural gas transit contract and fears are growing in Europe that it could be a cold winter. Russian gas bound for the EU is currently pumped through Ukraine, and disagreements over payments have marred relations between Russia and Ukraine - even resulting in the freezing of gas deliveries. Western Europe is dependent on Russian gas, and so are the transit countries through which the Russian pipelines pass. But the new undersea Nord Stream 2 pipeline bypasses Ukraine and Poland and changes Europe’s gas supply completely. Russia can effectively weaponize the pipeline by cutting off supplies to countries like Ukraine while keeping Western European customers supplied. Subscribe: For more news go to: Follow DW on social media: ►Facebook: ►Twitter: