Madeline Chambers and Sarah Marsh

BERLIN (Reuters). German Chancellor Olaf Scholz has halted Nord Stream 2’s gas pipeline project to deliver more Russian gas into Germany. This was after Russia officially recognized two regions of eastern Ukraine as independent.

The most controversial energy project in Europe was completed in September but it has been idle ever since pending approval by Germany or the European Union.

The goal of the project is to increase the flow of natural gas from Russia directly to Germany through the Baltic Sea. This will eliminate the need for traditional transit countries Ukraine.

Germany gets half of its gas from Russia. Nord Stream 2 is a project that aims to diversify Europe’s energy supply.

It was opposed by the European Union as well as the United States. They argued that the move would make Europe more dependent on Russia and also deny Ukraine transit fees, making the country vulnerable to Russian invasion.

Marcel Dirsus (non-resident fellow, Institute for Security Policy at Kiel University) stated that this was a significant shift in German foreign policy. It also has massive implications for Berlin’s position toward Moscow.

“It indicates that Germany is really serious about imposing harsh costs on Russia.”

Scholz stated that he asked the ministry of the economy to make sure certification was not possible at this time.

He said that there can’t be any certification for the pipeline, and Nord Stream 2 won’t start operating without it.

“The ministry’s appropriate economic departments will do a new assessment on the security of supply given the changes in the last few days.”

Robert Habeck, Minister of Economy, said that Germany was able to supply its own gas even without Nord Stream 2 deliveries.

He told reporters in Duesseldorf, however that gas prices were a different matter and would likely increase in the short-term.

Germany’s Federal Network Agency, which oversees electricity, gas and telecommunications sectors, suspended certification of the project in November. The agency stated that the operator had to register in Germany.

After the operator had followed the directions, energy analysts expected that the system would pick it up in the middle of the year.

When Scholz was asked recently if sanctions could be imposed in case of a Russian strike, Scholz said that all options are on the table. However, he avoided mentioning Nord Stream 2 when he was asked if the possibility existed.

Dmytrokuleba, Ukrainian Foreign Ministry tweeted: “This is morally. True leadership is taking tough decisions even in the most difficult situations. Germany’s action proves that.

Andrij Melnyk (the Ukrainian ambassador to Germany), also welcomed Scholz’s decision, but told Reuters that it was too late for the message. He said, “The question here is whether or not this message arrives too late. Action should have been taken sooner.”