Anticipating food deficiencies, Biden creates fossil fuel task force

“With regards to food shortages, it’s going to be real,” President Biden declared after meeting with NATO allies in Brussels, saying both Russia and Ukraine have been the breadbasket of Europe. “The price of these sanctions is not just imposed on Russia, it is imposed on an awful lot of countries as well, including European countries and the U.S.” Biden also related that the G7 had discussions on ways to “increase and disseminate more rapidly” grain from America and Canada, while European nations were urged to end limitations on sending food abroad.

Task force created aimed at Russian fossil fuels

With the ongoing sanctions against Russia, the Biden administration announced that it would form a task force aimed at reducing Europe’s reliance on fossil fuels from Russia. The initial plan centered around relieving supply pressures related to natural gas.

Warning on chemical weapons

NATO will respond “in kind” if Russia uses weapons of mass destruction in Ukraine, Biden announced at the same press conference. “We will respond if he uses it. The nature of the response depends on the nature of the use.” “It will be a blatant violation of international law and with far-reaching consequences,” added NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg, saying the use of such weapons could impact nearby NATO members and “will totally change the nature of the conflict.”

Rejecting ruble payments

EU leaders have rebuffed Vladimir Putin’s demand for natural gas payments to be made in rubles and even promised a retaliatory response to the latest maneuver by Russia. “It’s a contract violation, and contracts will be considered violated if Russia implements this condition,” Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi explained. Europe gets around 40% of its natural gas from Russia and is already dealing with a fallout from skyrocketing prices this winter.

Source: https://seekingalpha.com/