US eyes Arctic cooperation with Gazprom
Moscow and Washington are currently in talks over the possibility of future cooperation with Gazprom on international projects, including in the Arctic region, Bloomberg reported on Thursday, citing Russian and European officials. The news comes as the US seeks to normalize relations with Russia and gain access to the economically important region.
The Arctic has drawn increasing global attention due to its vast untapped energy and mineral resources, as well as its strategic trade routes. Russia has been developing its Northern Sea Route, the shortest shipping route between Western Eurasia and the Asia-Pacific, running through its Arctic and Far East regions. The route has been extensively modernized over the past years, with investment from India and China, which hold stakes in several Arctic energy projects.
One of the sources told Bloomberg that Russian state-run energy giant Gazprom could offer the US involvement in ventures in the Arctic region and some offshore projects such as the Sakhalin liquefied natural gas project if sanctions restricting foreign investment are overturned.
Unnamed sources familiar with the matter told the news agency that talks between US and Russian representatives on potential collaboration with Gazprom are at the stage of 'preliminary contacts.' It is reportedly unclear who is leading the reported discussions or whether officials from the administration of US President Donald Trump are directly involved.
US-Gazprom cooperation could involve joint projects in Europe and Asia, several sources said, adding that it could be part of Washington's broader push to weaken Russia's ties to China and Iran. Bloomberg noted that the step could also promote business opportunities following a peace deal to end the Ukraine conflict, which Trump sees as a top priority.
Earlier this week, German news outlet Correctiv reported, citing its own investigation, that Russia and the US were negotiating a major deal that would allow the resumption of Russian energy exports. The months-long discussions could reportedly involve US companies buying parts of the Nord Stream pipeline infrastructure and stakes in three German refineries owned by a subsidiary of Russian energy giant Rosneft.
Neither the Kremlin nor the White House has officially commented on the reports. President Vladimir Putin said on Thursday that Russia could resume gas exports to Europe through the undersea pipeline once Moscow and Washington reach an agreement on energy cooperation.
The Nord Stream 1 and 2 pipelines, built to deliver Russian gas to Germany and the rest of Western Europe, were destroyed by blasts at the bottom of the Baltic Sea in September 2022.
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