US House of Representative passes bill revoking 'normal trade ties' with Russia & Belarus

Amid escalations in the ongoing Russia Ukraine war, the House of Representatives passed a bill on Thursday to suspend normal trade relations with Russia and its neighbours Belarus. With the bill, the US lawmakers expect to further weaken the economic status of Moscow following its invasion of Ukraine. The House voted overwhelmingly in support of the bill, which will see President Joe Biden enact higher tariffs on more products and further weaken the Russian economy.

The vote that took place on Thursday comes in retaliation for Moscow’s continued offence on Kyiv. The final vote stood at 424-8 with strong bipartisan support for the legislation. The bill to suspend normal trade relations with Russia and Belarus comes only a day after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky made an emotional appeal to Congress as his country is being invaded.

Speaking in a virtual address, Zelenskyy had pleaded with Congress and US allies to ‘do more to deter Russia’. “I’m asking to make sure that the Russians do not receive a single penny that they use to destroy people in Ukraine,” Zelenskyy said while speaking to Congress. Earlier last week, President Joe Biden had announced that the US, along with the G7 and European Union, would move to revoke Russia’s "most favoured nation" status commonly referred to as normal trade relations.

US action against Russia

The United States, earlier on February 28, cut off the Russian Central Bank and sanctioned a state investment fund, in retaliation for Ukraine's invasion. To target the 'main artery' of the Russian economy, Biden ordered a ban on Russian energy imports to the United States and announced that the US will dramatically downgrade its trade status with Russia, banning imports of seafood, alcohol and diamonds from the country.

Earlier, the US and its allies had announced the removal of selected Russian banks from the SWIFT. Restrictions on the Russian Central Bank target its access to more than $600 billion (Rs 45,419.70 crore) in reserves the Kremlin has at its disposal. The sanctions took the Russian currency to its lowest level against the dollar in history. Meanwhile, Biden is expected to meet North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO) and European leaders in Brussels on March 24. More hard-hitting sanctions and crackdowns against the Putin-led regime are expected as a result of the meeting.

(With agency inputs)

(Image: AP)