Lubmin - The gas pipeline crossing the Baltic Sea is now operational. The Nord Stream pipeline was inaugurated in Lubmin, in Germany, and will carry Russian gas to Germany crossing Finland, Sweden and Denmark. The ceremony was attended by German Chancellor Angela Merkel, former Chancellor Gerard Schroeder, now the head of the Nord Stream consortium that also includes Russian-owned Gazprom and the German company Wintershall. "Gas coming from Russia, and the electricity it will generate, will contribute to guaranteeing secure energy supplies to European consumers," said Russian President Dmitri Medvedev. "This will improve energy security in Europe and make the lives of many Europeans more pleasant." According to Angela Merkel, Nord Stream is one of the greatest infrastructural projects of our times. "With this project," she said,  "we have proved, in the presence of many representatives of European countries, that in the future we can rely on a safe and lasting partnership with Russia". Nord Stream supplies Europe by going around the Ukraine, a country with which Russia has often clashed in the past over the price of Russian gas and these disagreements had resulted in supplies to Europe being blocked.