By Janet Ekstract
ISTANBUL- On Friday, in a White House press conference, U.S. President Joe Biden announced new, tougher sanctions on Russia. The first would revoke Russia’s ‘most favored nation’ trade status which the EU has also done. This means that Russian goods can now be heavily taxed and also means that Russia’s trading status is now downgraded to equal that of Cuba, according to economic analysts. In the U.S., this type of trade status is referred to as “Permanent Normal Trade Relations”or (PNTR). Biden said that Republican and Democratic lawmakers have given their support to pass this act in Congress. He also said that by revoking PNTR, Russia “will have a much harder time doing business with the Biden reiterated: “Putin is an aggressor and Putin must pay the price.” He also explained that the G7 are “stepping up pressure on oligarchs” and that new names have been added to the list of oligarchs sanctioned. Biden defiantly remarked: “They steal from the Russian people and seek to hide their money in all our countries.”
The US president declared: “The United States stands with the people of Ukraine.” He said the goal is “ramping up pressure on Putin” and added that G7 nations and the UK plan to jointly announce further sanctions against Russia. Biden reiterated that “unity among our allies is critically important,” and added, “The free world is coming together.” He said the US is now banning imports and goods from Russia that include caviar and other seafood products as well as vodka and diamonds. He also said that banning the export of luxury goods to Russia is another step but “they are not the last steps we’re going to take,” he emphasized.
The U.S. president highlighted the consequences that sanctions are having on Russia when he commented: “Our closest allies and partners are acting in unison. The ruble has lost half its value. The Moscow Stock Exchange has closed for two weeks. Russia’s government has been downgraded to junk status.” Biden added that if Russia’s stock exchange were to open, it would simply collapse.
On assistance to Ukraine, the president said that the U.S. has already sent one billion USD worth of security systems with new shipments arriving every day. He said: “We are working closely with the UN to support the people of Ukraine. We are supplying tens of thousands of tons of food, medicine, water – coming by truck or train every day.” Biden said this is a total of $107M in humanitarian assistance in just two weeks, that was sent to Ukraine. He added that on Thursday night Congress passed a bipartisan spending bill that includes aid to Ukraine that he will sign immediately.
Biden emphasized in his remarks: “We will make sure Ukraine has weapons to fight Russia and we will welcome Ukrainian refugees with open arms. We will defend every single inch of NATO territory.” But his caveat included a cautionary note: “We will not fight a war directly in Ukraine with Russia – we do not want World War III.” The US president added, referring to Putin: “He hoped to weaken the transatlantic alliance, he failed. The world is united, the American people are united. We will not let would-be autocrats direct the world, we are showing our strength.”
