US And G7 Countries Intend To Deprive Russia Of The Status Of "most Favored Nation"

U.S. President Joe Biden holds a virtual meeting with business leaders and state governors to discuss supply chain challenges, specifically addressing semiconductor chip challenges, on the White House campus in Washington, U.S. March 9, 2022. REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst

WASHINGTON, March 10 – The United States, along with the G7 and the European Union, intend on Friday to revoke Russia’s “most favored nation” status over its invasion of Ukraine, several people familiar with the situation said. Reuters.

President Joe Biden will announce the plans at the White House at 10:15 a.m. ET (3:15 p.m. GMT), one source said on condition of anonymity.

The White House said Biden would announce “actions to continue to hold Russia accountable for the unprovoked and unjustified war against Ukraine,” but did not provide details.

Russia calls its actions in Ukraine a “special operation”.

Removing Russia’s privileged nation status opens the door for the United States and its allies to impose tariffs on a wide range of Russian goods, further adding pressure to an economy that is already heading into a “deep recession.”

The coordinated action by Washington, London and other allies comes on top of a slew of unprecedented sanctions, export controls and banking restrictions aimed at forcing Russian President Vladimir Putin to end Europe’s biggest war since World War II.

According to the two sources, each country should implement a change in Russia’s trade status based on its own national processes.

In the United States, removing Russia from its “permanent normal trade relations” (PNTR) status would require an act of Congress, but lawmakers in both houses — and on both sides of the political aisle — have already pledged their support, two officials said.

“President Biden and the administration appreciate the bipartisan leadership of Congress and its calls to repeal the PNTR,” one official said, adding that the White House will work with lawmakers on legislation to repeal Russia.

Unprecedented wide-ranging sanctions on Russian banks and elites, along with export controls on a host of technologies, have already caused the Russian economy to collapse, and the International Monetary Fund now predicts it will plunge into a “deep recession” this year. .

In 2019, Russia was the 26th largest US trading partner, with about $28 billion exchanged between the two countries, according to the US Trade Representative’s office.

Major imports from Russia included mineral fuels, precious metals and stone, iron and steel, fertilizers and inorganic chemicals — all items that could face higher tariffs after Congress decides to remove Russia’s trade privileged nation status.

Biden on Tuesday imposed an immediate ban on Russian oil and energy imports. More

Some US governors have already ordered state-owned liquor stores to stop selling Russian-made vodka and spirits in solidarity with the Ukrainian people. More

Reporting by Steve Holland and Andrea Shalal in Washington; Edited by Christopher Cushing and Michael Perry

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