President Joe Biden announced March 8 that the U.S. will ban imports of Russian oil and gas in the wake of Russia's invasion and siege of Ukraine.
Biden announced the ban in a Tweet released Tuesday morning.
"Today, I'm announcing that the United States is targeting a main artery of Russia's economy," Biden said in the tweet. "We are banning all imports of Russian oil and gas."
The U.S. ban comes at the same time as an announcement from European Union leaders that the EU will seek to phase out its dependence on Russian fossil fuels by 2030 to prevent damage to its member economies in the case of geopolitical conflicts such as the Russian attack, The Associated Press reported. The European Commission disclosed proposals on March 8 to cut out Russian fuels and will meet in a summit later in the week to discuss options.
The EU "can reduce EU demand for Russian gas by two-thirds before the end of the year," a draft of the summit declaration said.
"We must become independent from Russian oil, coal and gas," commission President Ursula von der Leyen said in a statement. "We simply cannot rely on a supplier who explicitly threatens us."
The EU imports 90% of the natural gas used to generate heat and electricity, and Russia currently provides 40% percent of the EU's gas supply and a fourth of its oil, the AP reported. The EU is now shifting its focus to renewable energy, although it has yet to officially ban imports of Russian fuel, as the U.S. and U.K. have.
Biden said in a press briefing Feb. 24 that he understood the impact such severe measures could have on the economy, and he warned companies not to take advantage in an effort to raise profits.
"In our sanctions package, we specifically designed to allow energy payments to continue," Biden said. "I know this is hard, and that Americans are already hurting. I will do everything in my power to limit the pain the American people are feeling at the gas pump."
Russian Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak warned that a global rejection of Russian oil would drive prices skyward, Reuters reported.
"It is absolutely clear that a rejection of Russian oil would lead to catastrophic consequences for the global market," Novak said in a statement. "The surge in prices would be unpredictable. It would be $300 per barrel if not more."
The spike in prices has already rocked the U.S. in recent weeks. Gasoline prices have jumped 40 percent since last year, and inflation is in double digits for many food items, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported.