Gas prices: Biden pledges to use ‘every tool at our disposal’ to limit price hikes after imposing new sanctions on Russia

CNN — President Joe Biden on Tuesday pledged that his administration is using “every tool at our disposal” to limit the effect on gas prices in the US of sanctions he announced against Russia, acknowledging that Americans will likely see rising prices at the pump in the coming months. But as we do this, I’m going to take robust action to make sure the pain of our sanctions is targeted at the Russian economy, not ours.” Moving forward, Biden said that the administration is “closely monitoring energy supplies for any disruption.” “We’re executing a plan in coordination with major oil producing consumers and producers toward a collective investment to secure stability and global energy supply,” he told reporters in the White House East Room. He said the moves would effectively “cut off Russia’s government from Western finance.” A senior administration official later told reporters the White House was “quite deliberate” in ensuring “the pain of our sanctions is targeted at the Russian economy, not ours.” “None of the measures are designed to disrupt the flow of energy to global markets, and we are now executing a plan, in coordination with major oil consumers and oil producers, towards our collective interest to secure the stability of global energy supplies,” the official said. The official added that rising gas prices are not the direct result of the pipeline’s halt, but over fears that Russian President Vladimir Putin might weaponize energy supply to “hold the world hostage.” The 750-mile pipeline was completed last September but has not yet received final certification from German regulators.