China News Service, March 8, according to foreign media reports, the two parties in the US Congress announced on the 7th that they had reached an agreement on a bill to punish Russia to ban the United States from importing Russian oil, while further authorizing US President Biden to increase tariffs on Russian products. Tariffs.
U.S. wants to pull people in to impose oil embargo on Russia
Reuters said Biden is expected to hold a video conference with the leaders of France, Germany and the United Kingdom, and the U.S. government is continuing to seek support from these countries for banning imports.
U.S. Secretary of State Blinken said on the 6th: "I don't rule out acting in one way or another, no matter what they do, but everything we do starts with coordination with allies and partners."
A senior U.S. official told Reuters that no final decision had been made, but "if it is announced,
it is likely that the U.S. will act alone."
Germany: Continue to import Russian energy
The German finance minister and foreign minister rallied against the debate on whether to immediately suspend imports of oil and natural gas from Russia.
German Foreign Minister Belle Burke sees the move as meaningless and unsustainable.
German Finance Minister Lindner is also skeptical of the move to ban Russian energy imports.
German Chancellor Scholz said on the 7th that given the importance of Russia's energy supply to Germany's national economy and people's livelihood, Germany still has no intention of banning imports.
That's why Europe has deliberately avoided sanctions on Russia's energy supplies, Scholz explained, and gone all out to take other measures.
Germany relies on Russia for fossil fuels.
According to data from the German Federal Ministry of Economic Affairs, Russian natural gas accounts for about 55% of Germany's total natural gas imports, coal accounts for 50%, and crude oil imports account for about 35%.
Britain puts paradox on its face
British Prime Minister Johnson published a signed article in the New York Times on March 6, proposing six steps that Western countries must take now to help Ukraine in his view.
In the article, Johnson mentioned that further economic sanctions must be taken to expel every Russian bank from the Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Communication (SWIFT) payment system.
So far, the UK has imposed sanctions on more than 300 (Russian) elites and entities.
"But unless Europe starts to move away from Russian oil and gas, these measures will not be enough," Johnson said.
OPEC: Unable to control global oil price rise
In fact, the United States itself has been slow to make a decision on this step.
International crude oil prices have soared to a nearly 14-year high.
On March 7, during the Asian trading hours, international oil prices rose sharply.
Among them, the price of Brent crude oil futures in London once hit $139.13 per barrel, and the price of WTI crude oil futures in the United States once exceeded $130 per barrel, both hitting new highs since 2008.
White House press secretary Psaki said that the surge in oil prices to the highest level was a direct result of the conflict between Russia and Ukraine.
According to Singapore's Lianhe Zaobao, the United States imports more than 500,000 barrels of Russian crude oil per day, which is equivalent to about 8% of the total crude oil imported by the United States. Any changes in crude oil supply may have a serious impact on the American people.
Regarding the surging oil prices, OPEC Secretary-General Barkindo issued a warning on the 7th that OPEC cannot control the rise in global oil prices, and geopolitics is the determinant.
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