US, Russia explore gas sales to Europe via Nord stream pipelines amid Ukraine conflict

According to recent reports, US and Russian officials have held confidential discussions to explore bringing a US investor into the gas pipelines.

As reported by Reuters, Top Russian and US officials, including US Special Envoy Jared Kushner, have held talks about bringing a US investor into the Nord Stream pipelines that delivered gas to Germany before Russia invaded Ukraine.

The discussions included US President Donald Trump's son-in-law Kushner and Kirill Dmitriev-a close adviser to Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Dmitriev and Kushner have met in Moscow and New York in recent weeks. While it was unclear to what degree they discussed Nord Stream on those occasions, the topic remains on the agenda, two of the people told Reuters.

"Any deals will have to be negotiated by Russia with DFC (US International Development Finance Corporation) and Treasury and must benefit United States taxpayers and companies," a White House official said, when asked about the pipeline discussions.

Kushner, who has been ‌trying to broker a truce between Russia and Ukraine, views doing business as central to restoring peace. Such a deal would enable US investors to profit from energy flows to Europe once the war ends.

On the other hand, Dmitriev, who has campaigned for a resumption of Russian gas sales to Germany, met last month with US Energy and Treasury Department representatives to discuss potential US-Russia energy initiatives.

It remains unclear how interested Washington is in pursuing the restarting of Russian gas flows to Germany, which is Europe's biggest energy consumer.

A US official said that given the obstacles, a deal is unlikely in the medium term. The Nord Stream gas pipelines are sanctioned by the US and the EU, making any restart illegal.

The initiative aims to potentially revive European energy flows and restructure asset ownership while the Ukraine conflict continues.

Sources indicate that these high-level talks also encompass potential transactions involving international assets belonging to Russian energy firms.

Such an arrangement could mark a major shift in transatlantic energy policy and sanctions strategy, though it faces heavy skepticism and political resistance from several European member states wary of restoring energy ties with Moscow.