German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier on Monday acknowledged that his previous support for the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline had been a mistake. Steinmeier, long an advocate of Western rapprochement with Russia, expressed regret for his prior backing of the controversial pipeline project. “My adherence to Nord Stream 2 was clearly a mistake,” he said. “We were sticking to a bridge in which Russia no longer believed and which other partners had warned us against.” Steinmeier, a Social Democrat who formerly served as Foreign Minister under Chancellor Angela Merkel, said Russian President Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine meant he and others had to reckon honestly with what they had got wrong. The controversial pipeline project worth $11 billion was completed in September but had stood idle pending certification by Germany and the European Union. Germany halted the Nord Stream 2 Baltic Sea gas pipeline project, designed to double the flow of …