Wednesday, March 9, 2022
On Tuesday, United States President Joe Biden announced a ban on imports of oil, gas and coal from Russia after the Russian invasion of Ukraine began last month.
Biden said: “the United States is targeting the main artery of Russia’s economy.” He also acknowledged that many allies would not be able to follow suit with similar bans.
“The decision today is not without cost here at home,” Biden continued. “Putin’s war is already hurting American families at the gas pump. Since Putin began his military build-up at Ukrainian borders, just since then, the price of gas at the pump in America went up 75 cents and with this action it’s going to go up further. I’m going to do everything I can to minimize Putin’s price hike here at home.”
Countries in Europe rely more heavily on fuel imports from Russia than does the United States. In the announcement from the US White House, Biden frequently termed the invasion as Vladimir Putin’s war.