Senator Collins' Statement on Russia Energy Ban

Washington, D.C.—U.S. Senator Susan Collins issued this statement in response to the Biden Administration’s announcement today that it will ban Russian energy imports:

“The U.S. has been purchasing tens of millions of dollars’ worth of Russian oil daily. Following a bipartisan effort I joined, that ends now. Cutting off this key source of revenue, as Ukrainian President Zelensky requested, will put more pressure on Putin,” said Senator Collins.  “We must continue working with European allies to reduce dependence on Russian energy. Rather than turning to authoritarians in the Middle East and South America, we should immediately boost U.S. energy production to lower the soaring price of gas and heating oil.”

Last week, Senator Collins joined a bipartisan group in introducing the Ban Russian Energy Imports Act, which would prohibit the importation of Russian crude oil, petroleum, petroleum products, liquefied natural gas (LNG) and coal.  Also last week, Senator Collins joined a group in calling on President Biden to take action to increase U.S. energy independence and help lower the prices Americans are paying to fill their gas and heating oil tanks. 

On Saturday, Senator Collins participated in a bipartisan, bicameral Zoom with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, who urged U.S. lawmakers to ban Russian oil.

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