Ever since western leaders began to threaten Vladimir Putin with sweeping sanctions over Ukraine they have been clear any such measures would seek to avoid disrupting energy supplies — the lifeblood of the western economy as much as of Russia’s.
But as the brutality of Moscow’s invasion has intensified, the idea of targeting oil and gas exports for sanctions is no longer off the table — even if it damages western economies in the process.
Canada, albeit a tiny buyer of Russian energy, has blocked crude imports and in the US, President Joe Biden is under mounting pressure from a diverse coalition of Republicans and Democrats to ban Russian oil.