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Russia is one of the world's biggest crude oil and natural gas
producers, and the United States has been urging global energy
producers to boost output to stem an increase in prices.
"We met. We discussed energy issues, among other things. We
touched upon questions related to sanctions," Novak said of his
meeting with U.S. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin at a press
briefing in Washington.
"We can't sidestep these difficult questions, so of course we
touched upon them during our contact."
Novak said other discussions with U.S. Energy Secretary Rick
Perry covered Russia's Nord Stream undersea gas pipeline.
Plans to double the capacity of the pipeline to 110 billion
cubic meters per year have riled both Washington and Brussels,
which is trying to cut its reliance on energy supplies from
Russia.
Washington believes the pipeline would give Russia, which has at
times frozen deliveries to parts of Europe over pricing
disputes, more power over the region and the administration of
President Donald Trump has followed that of Barack Obama in
opposing the Nord Stream 2 project.
The planned volumes are more than half of Russian total gas
exports to Europe, which is seen reaching a record high of 200
bcm this year.
The move to expand the pipeline is also designed to bypass
Ukraine, the main route of Russian gas exports to Europe.
Novak said politics should not be allowed to intrude into
discussion of the Nord Stream project which stood on its own
economic merits.
"The implementation of such infrastructure projects has to be
built on the economic basis without any political evaluation of
this project," Novak said after his meetings.
The meetings took place while energy executives and ministers
from around the globe converged on Washington for the triennial
World Gas Conference, the industry's biggest summit.
The U.S. Congress has imposed economic sanctions in recent
months against Russia that - among other things - seek to
prevent companies from participating in Russian pipeline
projects or oil and gas development efforts.
The sanctions were designed to punish Russia for its 2014
annexation of Crimea from Ukraine and for meddling in the 2016
U.S. presidential election. Moscow denies it interfered in the
election.
Russia depends heavily on pipeline networks to get its energy
production to European markets, and is also keen to develop
energy reserves in its Arctic.
Novak has said in the past that the United States should not be
permitted to impose such sanctions without a vote of the United
Nations Security Council, of which Russia is a permanent member.
The United States has been urging increased supply from the
world's biggest producers, including OPEC members, to help stem
an increase in oil prices that threatens economic growth.
It is also renewing sanctions against OPEC-producer Iran after
abandoning a global deal meant to stem its nuclear ambitions,
and urging consumers of its oil to stop their imports completely
- another factor pushing up oil prices.
Perry told reporters on Monday, before meeting with Novak, that
he was "amenable to having conversations, to creating a
relationship" with Russia.
"He had invited me to, actually, to come visit some of the
things that they are doing in the Arctic," Perry said.
"I think we've got our issues with Russia, but I'm one of those
that believe you need to be having conversations with folks and
finding places that we can work together."
(Additional reporting by Polina Ivanova and Vladimir Soldatkin
in Moscow; Editing by Richard Balmforth)
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