President Biden is expected to announce a ban on Russian oil imports to the U.S. on Tuesday morning amid bipartisan pressure, FOX Business has learned, as Russia continues its invasion of Ukraine for a thirteenth day.
The president is set to make remarks from the White House on Tuesday morning, where he will announce "actions to continue to hold Russia accountable for its unprovoked and unjustified war on Ukraine."
As the war in Ukraine rages on, Americans are facing the surge in gas prices, and the Biden administration is facing calls from Republicans and Democrats in Congress, as well as Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to ban imports of Russian oil, and increase domestic energy production.
Zelenskyy, on Monday, called for "boycotts" of Russian oil imports to the U.S. and European countries.
And Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Sunday that the administration is speaking with partners and allies "to look, in a coordinated way, at the prospect of banning the import of Russian oil, while making sure there is still an appropriate supply of oil on world markets."
A Biden administration official told FOX Business Tuesday morning that the administration's announcement about a possible ban of oil imports from Russia to the United States was "imminent."
White House press secretary Jen Psaki, during the press briefing on Monday, addressed the issue.
"No decision has been made at this point by the president about a ban on importing oil from Russia," she said Monday, adding that discussions are going on internally and with "counterparts and partners in Europe and around the world."
Russia is the third-largest producer of oil in the world, but the impact to U.S. oil imports would be "minimal" compared to allies, administration officials told Fox News.
Russian oil exports account for about one third of Europe’s oil imports, however, for the United States, Russian exports are just under 10% of U.S. overall imports.
"We are also very well aware, as we're having these conversations and as we're consulting with our partners, that there would be—that we have different capacities and capabilities," Psaki said.
An administration official echoed Psaki's comments, saying they "recognize the United States has a different set of capacities and capabilities of mitigating the impact than other allies and partners."
"When we say we are engaging with allies and partners on this, it’s about working with a range of countries around the world—both energy producers and those with reserves of oil supply—on addressing impact of energy price pressures," the official added.
Democrats and Republicans in Congress have also said it may be time for a ban on Russian imports.
Republicans and moderate Democrats alike are calling for the ramping up of American energy production, with GOP lawmakers criticizing the Biden administration for shutting down U.S. oil and gas pipelines.
When asked about potential congressional legislation to ban Russian oil imports to the U.S., and whether the president would sign such legislation into law, Psaki quipped: "Is a bill on its way over here that’s passed Congress? I don’t think so."
"The president has not made a decision at this point in time," she said. "So that's where we stand."
Meanwhile, the president's expected announcement will come just a day after Zelenskyy called for additional sanctions and "boycotts" of Russian oil by the West.
Zelenskyy said Ukraine is "deciding the future of the continent with our resistance."
"If the invasion continues and Russia does not change its plans, then the new sanctions package is needed," Zelenskyy said. "New sanctions steps against the war, for the sake of peace."
Zelenskyy called for "boycotts of Russian exports, namely refusal from oil and oil products from Russia."
"It may be called embargo, but it also simply may be called a moral when you refuse to give money to a terrorist," Zelenskyy said, adding that there should also be a boycott of imports into Russia, saying if Moscow doesn’t want to "follow civilized rules, then they should also not be getting any goods or services from civilization."
Source: foxbusiness.com
