Baltic States – CIS, Energy, EU – Baltic States, Gas, Legislation, Lithuania

"It is highly regrettable that some of our larger EU partners are trying to argue that this is just a private commercial project. It is absolutely clear to all of us that energy projects of this scale are geopolitical and their goals are geopolitical. This is why eight leaders, including myself, have signed such a letter (to say) that the European Commission cannot ignore and turn a blind eye to further large-scale attempts to divide Europe and push it back to dependency on a single source, that is, the Russian energy source," she said on LRT Radio on Thursday morning.

According to Grybauskaite, the pipeline poses a threat to the EU's solidarity and energy security. It is not an economic project, because the existing Nord Stream pipeline is operating at just over 50% of its capacity.

"Nord Stream 1 is operated at slightly more than 50%, which raises a lot of questions. Practically, a half of it is not being used. So what is the purpose of having a Nord Stream 2? The purpose would be very clear.  First, it is to bypass Ukraine so that it is no longer a transit country and things are even more difficult for it. What we see is a purely politicized project directed against Ukraine and some eastern EU countries. Also, there is apparently a divide and rule policy or a divide and influence policy," she said.