Joseph Nasr

BERLIN, (Reuters) – The United States and Germany fought on Friday about whether nuclear power should make part of their energy mix.

John Kerry, U.S. special climate envoy, stated that cutting carbon emissions quickly required some reliance upon nuclear energy. He also said that gas as a temporary fuel was not the best way to address the problem of climate change.

Franziska Brantner is the Economic Ministry’s parliamentary state secretary and an ecologist Greens member. She defended Germany’s plan to make gas the bridge fuel in its transition from nuclear and coal.

American President Joe Biden’s administration has put pressure on Germany for the abandonment of Nord Stream 2 because it would make Germany more dependent on Russian gas.

The Kremlin would be able to use the pipeline, which is still awaiting approval from regulatory authorities, to attack Europe with energy at a time when tensions are rising between the West and Russia.

For example, gas. It can also be used to transition fuel. However, it could be worth more in the long-term if someone comes up with carbon storage storage and utilisation. Kerry stated that the journey is not over.

“I think that without some element of nuclear, we will not get there as fast and as efficiently as we should,”

He called long-term assets of gas infrastructure “stranded,” a term that criticized Germany’s dependence on it. However, he didn’t mention Nord Stream 2, a pipeline which passes under the Baltic Sea but bypasses Ukrainian territory.

Brantner was asked by a moderator whether Germany’s decision this year to close its last nuclear reactors did not mean that it avoided the best way forward to a greener future. Kerry replied, “No.” It’s easy to answer, it’s “no”. That’s part of what you said. Your answer was that nuclear is expensive. Exactly. Renewables are a cheaper option.

Brantner and Kerry also differed over whether nuclear power should be transfer to countries with lower energy consumption to reduce their coal-based emissions.

Kerry stated that there is promising research underway in America to address issues such as proliferation, radioactive waste, and safety related to nuclear power plant operations.

Brantner of the Greens party, whose roots are in the antinuclear movement from the 70s and 1980s, stated that Germany wouldn’t use tax payers money to transfer its nuclear energy knowledge to developing countries because of the danger of nuclear proliferation.