DISINFO: ECJ decided to limit Gazprom access to the OPAL pipeline made in the interest of the USA
SUMMARY
The decision of the European Court of Justice concerning the limitation of access to the OPAL pipeline was made in the interest of the United States; it may be changed when Europe faces shortages of gas during the winter period.
RESPONSE
Recurring pro-Kremlin narrative that the United States fully controls the foreign and domestic policy of the European Union. See other examples of this message here, here and here. The statement that the United States controls the work of the European Court of Justice is a conspiracy theory. The Court is not subordinate to or influenced by the US authorities. As can be seen in the Court's statute, before taking up his/her duties each judge shall, before the Court of Justice sitting in open court, take an oath to perform his/her duties impartially and conscientiously and to preserve the secrecy of the deliberations of the Court. This decision could potentially impact the Nord Stream 2 offshore pipeline project (in which Gazprom is involved), which is nearing completion, as well as the first leg of the project, which is operational since 2011. The court's decision annuls a Commission decision from 2016 to exempt the Opal pipeline from EU rules on preventing dominance of the supply infrastructure. Just like Nord Stream, Nord Stream 2 is meant to tap into Opal, with this decision now limiting the volume of that intake to 12.5 bcm/y. See other examples of disinformation about the EU-US relations here.