Pulling a plaster off in one short rip is the right way to do it. It seems Joe Biden likes doing it over a period of hours, or even days, judging by his approach to applying sanctions on Russian oil and gas. Since the invasion, each rumour about sanctions coming in sent oil and gas prices soaring, to compound the existing cost-of-living crisis in the UK, Europe and beyond.
The high point at the time of publication was $139 (£106) a barrel. Now the sanctions have landed – a full ban on Russian oil, liquefied natural gas (LNG) and coal imports into the US – traders and investors have a chance to work out what the actual ramifications will be.
According to reports from across the pond, Biden struggled with the prospect of cutting any oil imports at a time when petrol prices were surging. Obviously, spending power varies widely in the country he governs, but people in the UK would love to see petrol prices in the realm of the 'record' Washington DC-area price of $4 a gallon this week. That’s 68p a litre.
To be fair to Biden, it’s not just Dodge RAM-driving potential voters calling for the oil to keep flowing. Germany, Italy and smaller European countries reliant on Russian energy exports have been calling for exports to continue even as Ukrainian civilians are killed by Russian rockets, mortars and bullets. But they have also stepped up in other ways, such as Germany blocking Nord Stream 2 and taking in hundreds of thousands of Ukrainian refugees.
Biden said in his sanctions announcement he had been telling European leaders for months they had to “wean themselves off” Russian oil. I’m sure they would love to as well, but not everyone has a Venezuela sitting in their back pocket to un-sanction to replace the supply.
Choosing not to hand billions of dollars to Vladimir Putin is clearly the right thing to do. But Biden should have been quicker to make his move.
Oh, forgot to mention: the UK also announced an import ban: just oil, from the end of 2022. That is unlikely to rattle Putin much.
