Continued U.S. and German discord over the Nord Stream 2 pipeline, along with the ongoing conflict in eastern Ukraine, reflect Ukraine’s struggles to convince Western policymakers to fully support its foreign policy. Domestic tensions in Ukraine due to perceived meager support from the West could further weaken President Volodymyr Zelensky’s government. The United States and Germany are planning to announce a deal on the disputed Nord Stream 2 pipeline in the coming days, according to unnamed sources cited in a July 19 Reuters report. This follows the July 16 meeting between German Chancellor Angela Merkel and U.S. President Joe Biden in which both leaders declared their unity against Russian aggression and agreed to collaborate on mobilizing investment aimed at helping emerging economies in Central and Eastern Europe transition to cleaner energy, but failed to resolve their countries’ differences on the natural gas pipeline between Germany and Russia. As part of...
