It appears that the US-EU "geopolitical marriage" is bursting at the seams due to the irresponsible foreign strategy of the US political elite, Russian economist Ivan Danilov wrote for RIA Novosti, revealing what could become the final straw for the long-lasting trans-Atlantic union.

It seems that the geopolitical divorce between the US and the EU may take place sooner than anyone expected, Ivan Danilov, a Russian economist and author of the popular blog Crimson Alter, notes in his op-ed for RIA Novosti.

In his earlier articles Danilov called attention to the growing dissatisfaction with Washington among European leaders, highlighting that the US-EU "marriage" had begun to crack.

However, there is a factor that could accelerate the process, the economist pointed out.

"When the US senators voted for a new package of sanctions against Russia, they were solving domestic political issues, and also tried to limit the freedom of foreign policy maneuver for President Donald Trump. They couldn't imagine that their actions would not only cause a sharp diplomatic reaction from the leading EU countries, but would also lead to the emergence of the issue of retaliatory sanctions against the United States of America in the European media," Danilov wrote.

Indeed, the recent package of anti-Russian measures which is meant to be codified into law has caused a storm of criticism from US allies in Europe.

The problem is that the new bill is targeting Russia's energy sector, most notably the Nord Stream 2 project which is intended to carry cheap natural gas from Russia to Europe. Furthermore, Germany's Wintershall and Uniper, Austria's OMV, Anglo-Dutch Shell and France's Engie are directly involved in the project.

In a joint statement, Germany's Foreign Minister Sigmar Gabriel and Austria's Chancellor Christian Kern slammed the decision by the US Senate to impose new sanctions on Moscow over its alleged interference in the US presidential election as well as the ongoing situations in Ukraine and Syria.