The American President, Joe Bidenannounced Thursday economic sanctions and export restrictions on Russia in response to its invasion of Ukraine.
It will sanction four more Russian banks and cut off more than half of Russia’s tech imports, he said in a White House speech.
“This will impose a high cost on the Russian economy, both immediately and in the long term.”, he warned.
Biden also stated that removing Russia from the Swift interbank network was still “an option” but that “currently it is not (a) position” shared by the Europeans and assured that the other financial sanctions announced would have “as much or more impact” than that measure requested by Ukraine.
Oil reserves
The US president has also pledged to release oil from the strategic reserve if necessary to protect consumers from the impact of rising prices.
Prices are on the rise due to Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine and the prospect that supplies from Russia will be affected.
Washington “will release additional barrels of oil when conditions warrant,” Biden said, noting that “Americans are already suffering.”
In addition, he advanced that the United States is working with allies on a “collective release of strategic oil reserves of the main energy-consuming countries.”
