German authorities gave permission Friday for work to resume on a subsea pipeline bringing natural gas from Russia that’s been the target of U.S. sanctions threats. The decision by the Federal Maritime and Hydrographic Agency can be appealed, meaning there could be another halt to the construction on the Nord Stream 2 project, which has drawn major criticism from the United States, some other European countries and environmental groups. The U.S. government has argued that the Baltic Sea pipeline would make Europe more dependent on Russian gas and hurt European energy security. The Kremlin has responded by accusing Washington of trying to promote sales of its own liquefied natural gas. The pipeline project was also opposed by the administration of President Barack Obama, and German officials have said they don’t expect significant changes in U.S. policy when President-elect Joe Biden takes over from President Donald Trump. […]