In December 2019, the US Senate introduced sanctions against companies involved in constructing a new gas pipeline between Russia and Germany called Nord Stream 2. In return, Russia said it was ready to give a tit-for-tat response to the sanctions. In particular, Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev asked the government to work out restrictive measures against the whole range of countries, including the US. Last time during the Ukrainian crisis, Russia’s counter-sanctions against western food imports led to higher prices for essential goods and food, negatively affecting the life of an ordinary Russian citizen. It is not clear yet, what kind of response the Russian government will give this time. Meanwhile, the construction of Nord Stream 2 has been currently suspended. The imposed sanctions are targeted at all the companies providing services for the pipeline. So, Swiss-Dutch company Allseas, which provided pipe-laying vessels to complete the construction of the Nord Stream 2, bailed out of the energy project to avoid the US sanctions.
