SOCHI, Russia, Aug. 14 (UPI) -- The Nord Stream natural gas pipeline and a series of investment deals are expected to be the focus of Friday bilateral talks between Russia and Germany.
Russian President Dmitry Medvedev is scheduled to meet with German Chancellor Angela Merkel in the Russian resort city of Sochi on Friday.
The two leaders are expected to discuss a deal by Russia's Sberbank and Magna International Inc., the Canadian automotive company, to buy the German division of General Motors, Opel.
Apart from the investments, Merkel and Medvedev are expected to raise the $6 billion Nord Stream natural gas pipeline, RIA Novosti reports.
Nord Stream would transit along a dual route through the Baltic Sea to Germany. Russia sees the project, and its South Stream counterpart, as an option to avoid politically sensitive routes through Ukraine that transfer 80 percent of all Russian gas to Europe.
The project, however, is met with concerns from littoral states to the Baltic Sea, who worry about the environmental impact of the pipeline construction.
Trade between Russian and Germany passed $67 million in 2008, making Germany the largest European trading partner with Russia.
