Senior Russian and U.S. officials, including U.S. special envoy Jared Kushner, have held discussions about bringing an American investor into the Nord Stream pipelines that supplied Germany with Russian gas before Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine, according to people familiar with the matter.
The discussions involved Kirill Dmitriev, a close adviser to Russian President Vladimir Putin, and Kushner, who is also the son-in-law of U.S. President Donald Trump.
Kushner, who has been seeking to help broker a ceasefire between Russia and Ukraine, views business ties as an important element in restoring peace. Such an agreement could allow American investors to benefit from energy flows into Europe once the war ends.
Dmitriev and Kushner have met in Moscow and New York in recent weeks. While it remains unclear to what extent they discussed Nord Stream during those meetings, the issue remains on the agenda, according to two people familiar with the discussions.
“Any agreement would have to be negotiated by Russia with the U.S. International Development Finance Corporation (DFC) and the Treasury Department and would have to benefit U.S. taxpayers and companies,” a White House official said when asked about discussions concerning the pipeline.
The official added that there had been no recent discussions about Nord Stream.
