Republicans to Block Nominated Sanctions Officials Over Nord Stream 2
The confirmation of two Treasury Department nominees slated to oversee the agency’s sanctions work may be in jeopardy over the Biden administration's decision not to sanction the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline.
A dozen Republicans on the Senate Banking Committee said they plan to oppose the nominations for both Brian Nelson and Elizabeth Rosenberg (see 2106220037) until the administration commits to sanctioning the gas project using authorities under the Countering America’s Adversaries Through Sanctions Act. The threat, sent in a July 28 letter to Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen, comes after weeks of concern from Republicans -- and some Democrats -- about the State Department’s decision not to sanction Nord Stream 2 AG, the company behind the pipeline (see 2106020004 and 2105260019).
Nelson was nominated to be undersecretary of the Terrorism and Financial Intelligence office, which oversees the Office of Foreign Assets Control. Rosenberg was nominated for assistant secretary of terrorist financing. But until CAATSA sanctions are imposed, Republicans on the Senate committee will not vote to confirm them, they said.
“President [Joe] Biden has unwisely reversed longstanding U.S. policy on Nord Stream 2,” the senators said, referencing “strong” opposition to the project by both the Trump and Obama administrations. “[T]he Biden administration has failed to comply with Section 228 of CAATSA by foregoing sanctions on NS2AG.”
A National Security Council spokesperson said officials in “critical roles” at Treasury, including potentially Nelson and Rosenberg, are needed to help the U.S. cut off financial support for terrorists. “We hope the Senate will move quickly to confirm these qualified nominees,” the spokesperson said July 30.
The U.S. last month said it would not block the gas project, a commitment widely seen as an attempt to strengthen ties with Germany and not stir controversy in a region over a pipeline that the administration viewed as inevitable (see 2107220008). Secretary of State Antony Blinken said sanctioning Nord Stream 2 would not “have changed anything in terms of physical completion” (see 2106070065).