To paralyze the Russian oil industry, the Biden administration is planning "secondary sanctions"

Take the lead in promulgating a ban on Russian oil, pressure OPEC to increase production, and win over European allies to sanction Russian oil.
.
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After the escalation of the Russian-Ukrainian conflict, the United States worked hard to "completely block" Russian oil, but it did half the work: Russian oil exports increased, but the European and American markets suffered from energy shortages and inflation
.

Under these circumstances, the United States will not succeed in making a living
.
The New York Times quoted U.
S.
officials as saying on May 19 that the Biden administration was planning secondary sanctions
against foreign entities.
One measure under consideration is that foreign companies will be subject to U.
S.
sanctions if they do not buy Russian oil at below-market prices in accordance with U.
S.
regulations
.

According to U.
S.
officials, the measure will urge countries to gradually reduce their oil purchases and further stifle Russia's oil revenues, thereby achieving the ultimate goal - to completely destroy Russia's central role
in the world's energy economy.

But the New York Times cautioned that it would be difficult for the United States to impose secondary sanctions around the world, and that such an important escalation could plunge the United States into political conflicts with China, India, Turkey and other countries that buy Russian oil
.

New York Times: The United States aims to weaken the Russian oil industry

It wants to stifle Russian oil revenues and lead to inflation in the country

Since the Russia-Ukraine conflict on February 24, Western countries have offered multiple rounds of sanctions against Russia covering the fields of
economy, finance, energy, airspace, science and technology, culture and sports.
US President Joe Biden has threatened that "the ruble is about to fall to rubble" and that the Russian economy will be halved
in the coming years.
Some Western economists predict a 15%
decline in Russia's gross domestic product (GDP) in 2022.

But Russia's Ministry of Economic Development predicts that the country's GDP will fall by 7.
8% in 2022, far exceeding Western expectations
.
The Economist previously published an article saying that the Russian economy has only suffered "skin trauma", the most important reason is that Russia's energy export industry has not been seriously affected
.

Looking back, the United States has been working hard
to "completely block" Russian oil.

US President Joe Biden signed an executive order on March 8 announcing a ban on Russian energy (including crude oil and certain petroleum products, liquefied natural gas and coal), and then tried to win over European allies to impose a ban on Russian oil and pressure OPEC to increase production to stabilize oil prices
.

But except for the UK's first follow-up, EU countries have been cautious about this matter
.
More than half of EU countries import energy products, with Russia supplying 41 percent of natural gas, 46 percent coal and 27 percent oil
.
Of these, one-third of Germany's oil imports come from Russia, and more than half of its gas supply depends on Russia
.

In the end, the sixth round of EU sanctions against Russia, including the oil embargo, could be reached, and some member states considered Hungary to be the "initiator"
.
OPEC has also repeatedly said it is "powerless" to increase production in Europe and the United States, and pointed out that the world does not have the capacity
to replace Russia's share of oil exports.

At the same time, European and American countries have experienced energy shortages and inflation problems
.
The Bureau of Labor Statistics released a report showing that the consumer price index (CPI) rose 8.
3% year-on-year in April, higher than the previous expectation of 8.
1%, and the highest level
in nearly 40 years.
Biden has blamed the high level of domestic inflation on "Putin's price hike
.
"

Russia, on the other hand, has made a
fortune with the rise in oil prices and the purchase of countries such as India.
U.
S.
officials say Russia continues to receive nearly $20 billion
a month from oil sales.
The latest report from the International Energy Agency shows that Russia's oil exports increased in April, and oil revenues this year increased by 50%
compared with the same period in 2021.

Some current and former U.
S.
officials have revealed that the main problem facing the Biden administration is how to "starve Russia" while ensuring that global oil supplies do not fall
.
They also said that the U.
S.
government does not want to immediately throw a large amount of Russian oil out of the global market because it will lead to higher oil prices, which will benefit Putin but exacerbate inflation levels
in Europe and the United States.

The latest report of the International Energy Agency on the oil market

If one plan fails, another plan will be born: the US government is planning a secondary sanctions program

"There will be no ban on Russian oil and gas," said Maria Snegovaya, a visiting scholar at George Washington University who studies sanctions against Russia, "in part because this will cause prices to soar, and Russia can benefit from soaring prices.
"

This is also in line with the Biden administration's considerations
.
State Department official Edward Fishman said administration officials were looking at what could be done in the shorter term to reduce Russia's revenue from oil sales and "ensure that countries outside the sanctions coalition, such as China and India," would not weaken sanctions simply by buying more oil
.

According to U.
S.
officials, secondary sanctions are on the Biden administration's internal list of considerations
.
Richard Nephew, a scholar at Columbia University and a senior Obama and Biden administration sanction official, explained that in simple terms, secondary sanctions are "if you do business with Russia, you can't do business with the United States.
"

Once secondary sanctions are imposed, it means that foreign companies typically comply with U.
S.
regulations to avoid sanctions
when doing business with U.
S.
companies or partner countries.
The report mentioned that the United States has previously launched severe economic isolation against countries such as Iran, North Korea, Cuba and Venezuela, but these countries continue to go their own way and have little
success.

U.
S.
officials told The New York Times that the government has not yet had a clear course of action, but one measure may be to require foreign companies to buy Russian oil at below-market prices or face U.
S.
sanctions
.
In addition, the U.
S.
government could cut off Russia's access
to oil payments by enacting a regulation requiring foreign banks engaged in payment operations to deposit funds in escrow accounts.

According to U.
S.
officials, the measure will urge countries to gradually reduce their oil purchases and further stifle Russia's oil revenues, thereby achieving the ultimate goal - to completely destroy Russia's central role
in the world's energy economy.

However, for the United States, there are difficulties
in enforcing escrow payments and setting price caps globally.
The reason is that by then, the United States will have to confront countries such as India and China that want to maintain good relations with Russia and ensure that its European and Asian partners are aligned with
the United States on any new sanctions.
The New York Times warned that this important escalation could plunge the United States into political conflicts with China, India, Turkey and other countries that buy Russian oil
.

However, the United States still has a replacement plan
.
U.
S.
officials revealed that in addition to secondary sanctions, the Biden administration is discussing another way to inflict pain on Russia: "legal seizure" of the assets of Russia's central bank and oligarchs frozen in overseas accounts during the Russian-Ukrainian conflict for Ukraine's reconstruction
.

Previously, the EU's High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Borrell had declared that he was "very much in favor" of the EU's confiscation of frozen Russian foreign exchange reserves to cover the cost
of rebuilding Ukraine after the war.
However, US Treasury Secretary Yellen said before the G7 finance ministers' meeting on the 18th that it is not legal to confiscate Russian assets, but the United States is negotiating with allies on how to make Russia pay for Ukraine's post-war reconstruction
.

In this regard, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov angrily accused the West of seizing Russia's foreign exchange reserves as tantamount to "stealing", and such behavior "has become a habit of the West"
.
Russian presidential Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on May 17 that some Western countries, including the United States, are waging a "hybrid war" against Russia, for which they have become "hostile countries.
"