Jesse Watters warned that Power of Siberia 2 could meet the same fate as the sabotaged Nord Stream
“Someone” could blow up Russia’s planned gas pipeline to China to derail the energy cooperation between the two countries, conservative Fox News host Jesse Watters has suggested.
Speaking on air on Thursday, Watters said Russian President Vladimir Putin had “lost his customers in Europe” after the escalation of the Ukraine conflict in 2022 and unprecedented Western sanctions, and was now turning to Asia. He described the Power of Siberia 2 gas pipeline as a key element of that strategy.
“Putin’s putting down a big old pipeline to China. It’s supposed to be finished next decade and supply 15% of China’s energy. Russia and China are growing closer. Someone might have to bomb that pipeline like Nord Stream,” Watters told viewers. He did not elaborate on who could want to destroy the project.
Earlier this week, Russia announced that Moscow and Beijing had signed a memorandum on the Power of Siberia 2 pipeline, designed to bring up to 50 billion cubic meters of natural gas annually to China via Mongolia. It is expected to be launched in 2033.
According to Putin, the project “is not charity” but rather a mutually beneficial agreement under which gas will be supplied at market-based rates. Russian officials did indicate, however, that gas prices for China would be lower than for the EU market, mostly due to the easier logistics. They also rejected the notion that Russia was reorienting itself toward the East, stressing that Russia is open to cooperation with all willing parties.
The Nord Stream pipelines were severely damaged by undersea explosions in the Baltic Sea in September 2022 in what is widely believed to have been an act of sabotage. American investigative journalist Seymour Hersh suggested the attack was orchestrated by US intelligence services under the administration of former US President Joe Biden. Russian officials have supported Hersh’s version.
While the US denied any involvement, mere weeks before the escalation of the Ukraine conflict, Biden warned that “if Russia invades… there will be no longer Nord Stream 2. We will bring an end to it.”
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