HYDE-SMITH JOINS EFFORT TO REINSTATE RUSSIAN PIPELINE SANCTIONS LIFTED BY BIDEN ADMINISTRATION
Cosponsors Legislation Challenging Administration Support of Russian Pipeline to Europe
WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Cindy Hyde-Smith (R-Miss.) today joined U.S. Senator Kevin Cramer (R-N.D.) in introducing legislation to reinstate sanctions waived by the Biden administration related to construction of the Russian Nord Stream 2 pipeline.
The Protecting Our Well-being by Expanding Russian Sanctions (POWERS) Act was introduced Thursday in response to the Wednesday night U.S. Department of State decision to lift sanctions on Nord Stream 2 AG, the entity in charge of the pipeline, and its chief operating executive. This action reverses previous U.S. policy.
“President Biden’s cancellation of Keystone XL pipeline construction eliminated thousands of American jobs and reduced our nation’s level of energy independence. Now the Biden Administration is adding insult to injury by paving the way for Russian energy dominance by waiving sanctions related to the Nord Stream 2 pipeline project,” said Hyde-Smith, who serves on the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee.
“Rolling back these sanctions, which have had previous bipartisan congressional support, sends the wrong message to many hardworking Americans, as well as our European allies and adversaries around the globe,” she said. “Congress should act as soon as possible to restore these sanctions.”
The POWERS Act would:
- Build on sanctions enacted in the FY2020 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) last December, by expanding the sanctions to subcontractors of any entity working on the Nord Stream 2 pipeline.
- Reinstate any sanctions against the company managing the project, as well as its corporate officers whose sanctions were waived by the Biden administration.
Additional primary cosponsors are Senators Mike Braun (R-Ind.), Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.), John Cornyn (R-Texas), Steve Daines (R-Mont.), Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), Roger Marshall (R-Kan.), Rick Scott (R-Fla.), and Thom Tillis (R-N.C.).
In March, Hyde-Smith signed a letter to President Biden regarding concern about the administration’s refusal to impose sanctions on entities involved in the Nord Stream 2 pipeline and warned the project makes the U.S. and its European allies more susceptible to Russian coercion.
###