The U.S. should unleash its oil power by lifting the ban on crude exports to constrain Russia, John Barrasso, a Republican Senator from the state of Wyoming, said Monday to U.S.' Fox News channel.
As the Republican lawmakers in the U.S. are pushing to remove the four-decades-old self-imposed ban on crude oil exports, Senator Barrasso aimed at Russia by linking the issue with Moscow's influence in Ukraine and Syria.
'Putin is a bully. He only understands force. That force can come just as effectively from a barrel of oil as from the barrel of a gun,' the Senator said, according to a statement on his official website.
Referring to the U.S. President Barack Obama's meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin in the United Nations to discuss Russia’s influence in Ukraine and Syria, Barrasso said 'President Obama should back up his talk by unleashing the power of American oil to compel Russia’s cooperation.'
'American energy is a master resource, a powerful tool that could be used against belligerent nations like Russia and Iran. President Obama has been far too eager to reject that tool or trade it away,' he explained.
The Obama administration said on Sept. 15 that it would not support legislation to remove the ban. However, Barrasso said lifting sanctions would help the U.S.' allies and undermine its adversaries.
'Our self-imposed limit gives Russia an added advantage to use oil to fund its aggression. Keeping American oil out of the global market helps keep international prices high, which helps to fund Putin’s belligerence,' he said.
'Lower oil prices over the past year have hit the Russian economy hard and caused trouble for Putin’s ambitions. More American oil could add to his troubles by increasing global supply,' he added.
Barrasso stressed that U.S. crude exports could provide alternative oil resources for importing countries including Poland, Belgium, Japan and Israel which depend on Russian oil.
'America must not concede world oil markets to belligerent nations like Russia and Iran. We have the energy resources to stand up to these hostile countries. Now is the time to use these resources,' he said.
After losing the debate of rejecting the Iran nuclear deal to the Obama administration, the U.S. Republican lawmakers have linked that issue with the ban on crude oil exports, by underlining Tehran's potential strengthening position next year with the possible rise of its oil exports in the post-sanctions era.
On Sept. 22, Barasso also spoke about the issue and said the nuclear deal and removal of sanctions on Iran will enable Tehran to raise its oil exports, and he emphasized that the U.S. should not be left behind.
'Iran will be allowed to sell its oil anywhere in the world, and American oil producers are largely prohibited from selling American oil anywhere in the world...If the export ban is lifted, U.S. energy producers could export another 1.6 million barrels a day. Our daily oil exports would jump from half a million barrels to about two million barrels—that’s what we want—lift the sanctions,' he said.
The U.S. House of Representatives is expected to hold a vote before the end of September to lift the export ban.
The U.S. Congress placed a ban on exporting domestically produced crude oil during the 1970s with a series of legislation after the Arab oil embargo in 1973 revealed that the U.S.' dependence on foreign oil resources threatened its energy security.
By Ovunc Kutlu
Anadolu Agency
ovunc.kutlu@aa.com.tr