US bans Russian oil import, Ukraine’s Zelensky thanks Biden; ‘strike against heart of Putin’s war machine’

US President Joe Biden banned oil and other energy imports from Russia on March 8 in a move aimed at stepping up international pressure on Vladimir Putin to halt his devastating assault on Ukraine.

The US President made it clear that he intended to bring the Russian economy down to its knees and punish President Putin for a “war of his choice” even if it meant Americans would have to suffer high gas prices for a while.

“Today I’m 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 a brief White House address, adding, “This is a step we’re taking to inflict further pain on Putin.”

Also read: Oil prices jumped to highs with Biden administration set to ban Russian oil

If the US and the global community did not respond with punitive measures today, it would face greater difficulty tomorrow, he warned, while predicting that even if Russia takes over Ukrainian cities, it would not be able to hold the country.

Reacting to Joe Biden’s announcement of ban on US import of oil, gas and energy from Russia, the eastern European nation’s President, Volodymyr Zelensky, echoed his US counterpart’s remarks that the move was against Vladimir Putin's ‘war machine.’

“Thankful for US and @POTUS personal leadership in striking in the heart of Putin's war machine and banning oil, gas and coal from US market. Encourage other countries and leaders to follow,” Zelensky posted on Twitter.

The first retaliation against Russia’s principal exports will plunge energy-deficient nations such as India into a bigger crisis. The world has capacity to offset a complete embargo on Russian oil, but it does not have enough gas. And the oil capacity with the rest of the world cannot come on-stream immediately, Economic Times reported.

Asia can bypass the blockade and access Russian oil and gas. But the switch will not happen overnight and will most certainly be expensive. The Indian import basket is a blend of crude predominated by supply from West Asia. Its gas imports will find new competition from a Europe pivoting away from Russian supply. Indian refiners will also have to bear costs of recalibrating processes to newer grades of crude, as well as extra freight and conflict insurance, the report stated.

Also read: Russian President follows Elon Musk on Twitter, but he is keeping Ukraine online

While the war between Russia and Ukraine continues, here's a look at major oil importing countries who depend on Russia, according to the UN Comtrade report 2020.

·         China - Trade value of crude oil import from Russia: $23.77 billion | Share in Import: 32.8 per cent

·         Netherlands - Trade value of crude oil import from Russia: $9.42 billion | Share in Import: 13 per cent

·         Germany - Trade value of crude oil import from Russia: $ 6.28 billion | Share in Import: 8.7 per cent

·         South Korea - Trade value of crude oil import from Russia: $5.03 billion | Share in Import: 6.9 per cent

·         Poland - Trade value of crude oil import from Russia: $ 4.18 billion | Share in Import: 5.8 per cent

·         Italy - Trade value of crude oil import from Russia: $ 3.74 billion | Share in Import: 5.2 per cent

·         Belarus - Trade value of crude oil import from Russia: $3.54 billion | Share in Import: 4.9 per cent

·         Finland - Trade value of crude oil import from Russia: $ 2.76 billion | Share in Import: 3.8 per cent

·         Japan - Trade value of crude oil import from Russia: $ 2.09 billion | Share in Import: 2.9 per cent

·         Slovakia - Trade value of crude oil import from Russia: $1.47 billion | Share of import: 2.0 per cent

·         UK - Trade value of crude oil import from Russia: $1.11 billion | Share of import: 1.5 per cent

·         Hungary - Trade value of crude oil import from Russia: $1.03 billion | Share of Import: 1.4 per cent

·         US - Trade value of crude oil import from Russia: $950 million | Share of import: 1.3 per cent

Also read: Russia warns West of $300 per barrel if US, EU impose ban

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• Russian oil import
• US bans
• Ukraine
• Zelensky
• thanks Biden
• strike against heart of Putins war machine