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German Chancellor Angela Merkel receives the ambassador of U.S. to Germany, Richard Grenell, in Meseberg, Germany July 6, 2018. \u00a9 REUTERS\/Axel Schmidt<\/p><\/div><\/p>\n
RT.com<\/p>\n
US Ambassador to Germany Richard Grenell says the new sanctions aimed at derailing the construction of the German-Russian Nord Stream 2 pipeline are beneficial to Europe, while chiding Berlin for not being \u201cpro-Europe\u201d enough.<\/p>\n
Grenell, who has courted controversy in Germany with his frequent attempts to meddle in Berlin\u2019s sovereign matters, said in an interview with Bild and AP that he was swamped with messages of gratitude from European diplomats after US President Donald Trump signed a defense spending bill envisioning biting sanctions on the companies involved in the construction of the $11 billion pipeline.<\/p>\n
\u201cI’ve been hearing all day from European diplomats thanking me for taking this action,\u201d<\/em>\u00a0Grenell said, claiming that the decision was made at the behest of Washington\u2019s\u00a0\u201cEuropean partners\u201d<\/em>\u00a0who, he said, were begging for the US to\u00a0\u201csupport them in their efforts.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n While Grenell did not elaborate on which countries\u2019 representatives were lining up to say thanks, he described the sanctions as\u00a0\u201ca very pro-European decision.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n The diplomat, however, brushed off the reaction of Germany, the country he is based in, which has flatly rejected the new crackdown, accusing Washington of interfering in its domestic affairs with extraterritorial sanctions.<\/p>\n Grenell, who is no stranger to lecturing Berlin on what should be done with its defense spending and foreign policy (he has even been\u00a0called<\/a>\u00a0an\u00a0\u201coccupation commissioner\u201d<\/em>\u00a0for that), appeared to suggest the European powerhouse needs to become more\u00a0\u201cpro-Europe.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n Currently there is a lot of talk in Germany about doing more for Europe and we believe that when it comes to Nord Stream 2, we have taken an extremely pro-European position<\/em><\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n Germany has long been vocal in its opposition to outside interference in its joint project with Russia, with some even calling for a tit-for-tat response such as banning imports of the American LNG (liquefied natural gas) to Germany.<\/p>\n