Friendship No More: How Russian Gas Is a Problem for Germany

Friendship No More: How Russian Gas Is a Problem for Germany
A crane transports a pipe in a production hall at the Nord Stream 2 facility at Mukran on Ruegen Islandon Oct. 19, 2017 in Sassnitz, Germany. Photo by Carsten Koall/Getty Images
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BERLIN—For decades, the Friendship pipeline has delivered oil from Russia to Europe, heating German homes even in the darkest days of the Cold War.

But a new pipeline that will carry gas direct from Russia under the Baltic Sea to Germany is doing rather less for friendship, driving a wedge between Germany and its allies and giving Chancellor Angela Merkel a headache.