Germany halts Nord Stream 2 and Russia responds with a stark warning
CNN
The West showed Tuesday it was ready to target Russia's huge energy industry — even at the risk of hurting itself — after Moscow ordered troops into parts of eastern Ukraine.
Germany said it was halting certification of the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline following Moscow's actions in eastern Ukraine on Monday.
"With regard to the latest developments, we need to reassess the situation also with regard to Nord Stream 2. It sounds very technocratic but it is the necessary administrative step in order to stop certification of the pipeline," Chancellor Olaf Scholz said in Berlin.
Venezuelan authorities are investigating opposition leader Maria Corina Machado for alleged treason after she expressed support for a US bipartisan bill that seeks to block Washington from doing business with any entity that has commercial ties with the government of Venezuela’s President Nicolas Maduro.