Explained: Why US and Germany aren't keen on banning oil imports from Russia despite Ukraine war

US secretary of state Antony Blinken on Sunday said that the US and its European allies were exploring banning imports of oil from Russia, a step that may further intensify financial pressure on the country in line with the harsh sanctions already imposed on it by Western countries. According to a Reuters report, even though Europe relies on Russia for crude oil and natural gas it has become more open to the idea of banning Russian products in the last few days. This, as German Chancellor Olaf Scholz has opposed the idea of banning Russian oil and gas imports as part of sanctions against Russia over its invasion of Ukraine. Also read: What are sanctions and can they stop Russia’s invasion of Ukraine? Let’s examine why the US and Germany are hesitant in banning imports of Russian oil and gas and how it may impact the countries: Oil and gas consumption of the US and Germany According to a report by Reuters, due to big cars and little public transportation in many areas, Americans are the world’s largest consumers of petrol. Gas prices surged to record peaks on Sunday after Blinken’s statement about the US and European allies considering a ban on Russian oil imports. US gas prices averaged $4.07 a gallon on Monday, an increase of $0.62 from a month earlier and 47 per cent higher than the year-ago level, according to the American Automobile Association. As per the Energy Information Administration {EIA}, the US imported more than 20.4 million barrels of crude and refined products per month on average in 2021 from Russia, which is about 8 per cent of US liquid fuel imports. Most of the US’s oil imports come from Canada, Mexico, and Saudi Arabia, but the amount of imported Russian oil has been increasing over the past few years, according to data from the US Energy Information Administration. In 2020, the US imported around 200 million barrels. According to the Federal Institute for Geosciences and Natural Resources (BGR), Germany imported about 98 per cent of its primary mineral oil consumption. While its domestic crude oil output from 49 oilfields was 1.9 million tonnes the same year, it imported 83 million tonnes of crude oil from other countries, including Russia which delivered 34 per cent of the total supply. In total, 32 countries supplied oil to Germany. According to Reuters, In 2021, Germany imported 142 billion cubic metres (bcm) of gas in 2021, 6.4 per cent less than in 2020, foreign trade statistics office BAFA, which does not identify the origins of imports, said. As per the report, in December 2021 Russian pipeline gas accounted for 32 per cent, Norwegian gas 20 per cent and Dutch 12 per cent, with storage 22 per cent and the rest from other smaller sources including domestic production. What Germany and the US are saying about Russian oil and gas imports According to a Reuters report, the White House is talking with the Senate Finance Committee and House of Representative Ways and Means Committee regarding a possible ban on oil imports from Russia. However, Blinken has also stressed the importance of maintaining steady oil supplies globally. “We are now in very active discussions with our European partners about banning the import of Russian oil to our countries, while of course, at the same time, maintaining a steady global supply of oil,” Blinken said in an interview on NBC’s Meet the Press. The report said that a bipartisan group of US senators introduced a bill on Thursday to ban US imports of Russian oil. The bill is getting fast-tracked and could ultimately become the vehicle for the sanctions After Russia invaded Ukraine, the White House slapped sanctions on exports of technologies to Russia’s refineries and the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline, which has never launched. So far, it has stopped short of targeting Russia’s oil and gas exports as the Biden administration weighs the impacts on global oil markets and U.S. energy prices. German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, however, pushed back against calls to ban Russian oil imports. According to The Guardian, Scholz cautioned that such a move could put Europe’s energy security at risk, and that energy imports from Russia were of “essential importance” to citizens’ daily lives. While the European Union faces an urgent task of finding alternatives to Russian energy supplies, “this won’t happen overnight,” Scholz said on Monday in a statement. “It’s therefore a conscious decision on our part to continue the activities of business enterprises in the area of energy supply with Russia. Heating, transport and electricity cannot be secured in the short term without these imports,” he added. With inputs from agencies Read all the Latest News , Trending News ,  Cricket News , Bollywood News , India News and Entertainment News here. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.