Biden Announces Ban On Russian Oil, Coal Imports To US

US President Joe Biden on Tuesday announced the banning of Russian oil, natural gas and coal imports to the US in response to the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

“Today I am announcing the United States is targeting the main artery of Russia’s economy. We’re banning all imports of Russian oil and gas and energy,” Biden said in remarks from the White House. “That means Russian oil will no longer be acceptable at US ports and the American people will deal another powerful blow to Putin’s war machine.”

The move made by the US is unilateral, without its European allies. Notably, there were some disagreements among European nations about whether to ban Russian energy imports.

Notably, EU countries have significantly more dependent on Russian energy than the US. US imports from Russia make up a small slice of the American energy portfolio — roughly 8 per cent in 2021, of which only about 3 per cent as crude oil.

The Department of Energy reported that in the last two weeks of February, Russian oil imports dropped to zero as US companies cut ties with Russia, effectively implementing their own ban, reported CNN.

The leaders of Germany, the United Kingdom and the Netherlands on Monday said Europe was too dependent on Russian energy supplies to stop imports overnight as part of any eventual sanctions package in response to the invasion of Ukraine.

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said that although Berlin supported tough measures against Moscow, Russian energy supplies remained “essential” for daily life in Europe.

“Europe’s supply with energy for heating, for mobility, power supply and for the industry cannot at the moment be secured otherwise,” Scholz said in a statement.

Russia is the largest supplier of natural gas to Germany, currently accounting for 38 per cent of imports, according to government statistics. Gas accounts for around a fifth of German power production reported DW. (ANI)