Vice President Joe Biden on Thursday denounced a Russian natural gas pipeline project as a "bad deal" for Europe.

Western European nations should place their trust in U.S. natural gas exports and not become overly dependent on Russian energy, or risk their energy security, he said.

Biden made the remarks at a press conference after meeting with officials in Sweden.

He called the proposed Russian Nord Stream 2 pipeline "a fundamentally bad deal for Europe." He said Europe doesn't need the project and can rely on more natural gas from the United States.

This year was the first time that liquified natural gas tankers from the U.S. began arriving on European shores, and that should continue with or without new supplies from Russia.

"Russian gas should be a part of [the] European market, but that market should be open and competitive, everyone has to play by the rules," Biden said. The U.S. is concerned that Russia is looking to monopolize the European energy market to push competitors out. It also is concerned that Russia could use market dominance to push its political will among U.S. allies.

At the same time, the U.S. has become a major global producer of oil and natural gas from a boon in hydraulic fracturing, or fracking. The drilling method is used to unlock vast amounts of fossil fuels from shale rock deep underground.

The Nord Stream 2 is a lengthy natural gas pipeline that will send fuel under the Baltic Sea directly to terminals in Germany. Several western companies in Europe are partners in the Russian gas project.

Nevertheless, the same day Biden made his comments, Reuters reported that many of Nord Stream 2's partners have withdrawn from the project after Poland reportedly rejected it over energy security and market concerns.

One issue that Biden didn't touch upon Thursday was last year's climate deal in Paris, which is driving some European countries to consider banning U.S. shale from entering the market.

France has been considering a ban for several months. Some of the country's officials see fracking as detrimental to the Earth's climate and environmental sustainability.