Ted Cruz praises Biden over sanctions tied to Nord Stream pipeline

Republican Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas on Wednesday offered rare praise for President Joe Biden over sanctions targeting the company behind a controversial pipeline that has become a flashpoint in the intensifying Ukraine-Russia crisis.

Biden said Wednesday that he was moving ahead with sanctions on the company in charge of building Russia’s Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline after blocking such measures last year using a national security waiver.

The move is part of a series of penalties the US and its allies have imposed on Russia this week in response to Russian President Vladimir Putin’s recognition of separatist territories in eastern Ukraine as independent.