3/8/22 - US Halts Oil and Gas Imports From Russia

Expect gas prices to rise as the US eliminates oil and natural gas imports from Russia, dealing another significant blow to the economic lifeline of money for the Russian army.

President Joe Biden announced the United States is cutting off oil and gas imports from Russia.
“That means Russian oil will no longer be acceptable at US ports; and the American people will deal another powerful blow to Putin’s war machine.”
Biden says the move has strong bi-partisan support, something that’s not been said recently about many geopolitical issues.
The US imports about 7-8% of its oil from Russia.
This adds to the economic sanctions that have already been placed on Russia over the invasion of Ukraine.

Many European countries will not be able to take this step as they are much more dependent on Russia fuel supplies.
Biden also called on gas companies to avoid price gouging and called on companies to begin using the already approved permits to begin drilling for future supplies.  
The pain at the pump has been noticeable leading up to this announcement.  Prices have surged 40 cents over the weekend, and another 10 cents within the last 24 hours.
But Biden says Americans will share in the economic pain that other countries are already facing.  He has already alluded to the fact that European countries face already face more economic hardships, given that many countries receive significantly higher imports of oil and natural gas from Russia.