{"id":1113801,"date":"2021-12-13T08:43:32","date_gmt":"2021-12-13T13:43:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=1113801"},"modified":"2021-12-13T08:43:52","modified_gmt":"2021-12-13T13:43:52","slug":"former-cia-chief-says-bidens-nord-stream-2-decision-has-nothing-to-do-with-potential-russian-invasion","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/former-cia-chief-says-bidens-nord-stream-2-decision-has-nothing-to-do-with-potential-russian-invasion\/","title":{"rendered":"Former CIA Chief Says Biden\u2019s Nord Stream 2 Decision Has \u2018Nothing To Do\u2019 With Potential Russian Invasion"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">34<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fformer-cia-chief-says-bidens-nord-stream-2-decision-has-nothing-to-do-with-potential-russian-invasion%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=1113801&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><ul>\n<li><strong>Former CIA chief of station Daniel Hoffman told the Daily Caller News Foundation that President Joe Biden\u2019s handling of the Nord Stream 2 pipeline has \u201cnothing to do\u201d with Russian troops assembling at the Ukrainian border.<\/strong><\/li>\n<li><strong>\u201cThat is not why Vladimir Putin is doing this,\u201d Hoffman said. \u201cThat has nothing to do with the timing of why he\u2019s doing this. He\u2019s deadly serious about Ukraine not joining NATO and that\u2019s the way he\u2019s looking at this.\u201d<\/strong><\/li>\n<li><strong>\u201cIt\u2019s because of ideas like liberty, freedom and democracy, which is what Ukraine has going for it,\u201d Hoffman added. \u201cIf those ideas came to Russia, Putin would be gone.\u201d<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Republicans\u2019 allegations that President Joe Biden\u2019s handling of the Nord Stream 2 pipeline empowered Moscow to potentially invade Ukraine are false, former CIA chief of station Daniel Hoffman told the Daily Caller News Foundation.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThat is not why Vladimir Putin is doing this,\u201d Hoffman said. \u201cThat has nothing to do with the timing of why he\u2019s doing this. He\u2019s deadly serious about Ukraine not joining NATO and that\u2019s the way he\u2019s looking at this.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Secretary of State Antony Blinken <a href=\"https:\/\/www.state.gov\/nord-stream-2-and-european-energy-security\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">announced<\/a> that the U.S. would waive sanctions on the pipeline, which is run by the Russian state-run firm Gazprom, in May. Biden gave the final <a href=\"https:\/\/dailycaller.com\/2021\/07\/21\/nord-stream-2-joe-biden-mike-pompeo-germany-russia-ukraine\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">approval<\/a> in July after meeting with then-Chancellor Angela Merkel of Germany.<\/p>\n<p>As thousands of Russian troops have <a href=\"https:\/\/dailycaller.com\/2021\/12\/07\/biden-putin-ukraine-russia-sasse-haley-trump\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">assembled<\/a> at the border, with U.S. intelligence estimating Moscow has developed plans for an invasion, some Republicans have blamed the Nord Stream 2 decision for the crisis. Republican Texas Sen. Ted Cruz told the DCNF that Biden\u2019s \u201cweakness\u201d on the issue led Russian President Vladimir Putin to act.<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_7335966\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" readability=\"35\">\n<p id=\"caption-attachment-7335966\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) talks with reporters on his way to a vote at the U.S. Capitol on December 2, 2021 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Drew Angerer\/Getty Images)<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>\u201cBiden\u2019s surrender on Nord Stream 2 sealed this perception and left Ukraine open to invasion by giving Putin an alternative route to move gas to Europe,\u201d Cruz said. \u201cThat\u2019s why Russian tanks are massing on the Ukrainian border right now.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cPresident Biden gave Putin a pass on the Nord Stream 2 pipeline,\u201d Republican Florida Sen. Marco Rubio told the DCNF. \u201cThat decision left our friends in Eastern Europe, including Ukraine, incredibly vulnerable to Moscow. Now, we find that Putin is planning an invasion on Ukraine.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Hoffman argued that those making such assertions are playing politics, as sanctions were never going to \u201cchange Putin\u2019s calculus.\u201d <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/dailycaller.com\/2021\/12\/08\/joe-biden-sending-us-troops-ukraine-not-on-table\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">(RELATED: \u2018That\u2019s Not On The Table,\u2019 Biden Says On Sending US Troops To Ukraine)<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n<p>\u201cI don\u2019t think that holds water at all,\u201d Hoffman told the DCNF. \u201cIt\u2019s because of ideas like liberty, freedom and democracy, which is what Ukraine has going for it \u2026 if those ideas came to Russia, Putin would be gone.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The Russian foreign ministry released a list of demands amid the escalating conflict on Friday, one of which was asking NATO to rescind its promise to Ukraine and Georgia that they would eventually become members, Reuters <a href=\"https:\/\/www.reuters.com\/world\/europe\/russia-demands-rescinding-nato-promise-ukraine-georgia-2021-12-10\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">reported<\/a>.<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_7335967\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" readability=\"37\"><img decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-7335967\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"wp-image-7335967 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/12\/GettyImages-1235252114-scaled-1.jpg\" alt=\"Secretary Of State Blinken Testifies Before Senate Foreign Relations Committee\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/12\/GettyImages-1235252114-scaled-1.jpg 2560w, https:\/\/cdn01.dailycaller.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/12\/GettyImages-1235252114-180x120.jpg 180w, https:\/\/cdn01.dailycaller.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/12\/GettyImages-1235252114-620x413.jpg 620w, https:\/\/cdn01.dailycaller.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/12\/GettyImages-1235252114-768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/cdn01.dailycaller.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/12\/GettyImages-1235252114-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/cdn01.dailycaller.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/12\/GettyImages-1235252114-2048x1365.jpg 2048w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2560px) 100vw, 2560px\" \/><\/p>\n<p id=\"caption-attachment-7335967\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL) questions U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken during a Senate Foreign Relations Committee hearing on Capitol Hill, September 14, 2021 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Drew Angerer\/Getty Images)<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>National security adviser Jake Sullivan has <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=DfXYInyZvcY&amp;ab_channel=TheWhiteHouse\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">argued<\/a> that Nord Stream 2 actually gives the U.S \u201cleverage,\u201d because if Putin wants gas to flow through the pipeline, \u201che may not want to take the risk of invading Ukraine.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Former Under Secretary of Defense Robert Wilkie, a visiting fellow at The Heritage Foundation, took the opposite stance, agreeing with Republicans who stated that Nord Stream 2 played a role in Russia sending its troops to the border.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cBiden made a preemptive concession at the beginning of his administration without going to the table and talking with Putin,\u201d he previously <a href=\"https:\/\/dailycaller.com\/2021\/12\/08\/joe-biden-nord-stream-2-russia-ukraine-energy-policy\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">told<\/a>&nbsp;the DCNF. \u201cOnce the natural gas starts to flow, you have just tethered Western European comfort and prosperity to Moscow.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/dailycaller.com\/2021\/12\/07\/bloody-massacre-ukrainian-official-describes-devastation-russian-invasion-would-bring\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Oleksiy Reznikov<\/a>, the Ukrainian defense minister, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnn.com\/2021\/12\/07\/europe\/oleksiy-reznikov-ukraine-russia-interview-intl\/index.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">told<\/a> CNN that a Russian invasion would lead to a \u201creally bloody massacre.\u201d A senior military adviser for the country reportedly <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2021\/12\/09\/world\/europe\/ukraine-military-russia-invasion.html?smid=tw-nytpolitics&amp;smtyp=cur\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">told<\/a> The New York Times that Ukraine might have to <a href=\"https:\/\/dailycaller.com\/2021\/12\/10\/russia-ukraine-joe-biden-vladimir-putin-oleksandr-pavlyuk-kyrylo-budanov\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">open its weapons depots<\/a> to its citizens if worst came to worst.<\/p>\n<p>Content created by The Daily Caller News Foundation is available without charge to any eligible news publisher that can provide a large audience. For licensing opportunities of our original content, please contact <a href=\"mailto:licensing@dailycallernewsfoundation.org\">licensing@dailycallernewsfoundation.org<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Former CIA chief of station Daniel Hoffman told the Daily Caller News Foundation that President Joe Biden\u2019s handling of the Nord Stream 2 pipeline has \u201cnothing to do\u201d with Russian &#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":205,"featured_media":2315279,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1113801","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1113801","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/205"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1113801"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1113801\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2315279"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1113801"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1113801"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1113801"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}