President Obama threatens sanctions against Russia’s energy sector

President Obama threatened a new round of sanctions against Russia yesterday, this time targeting the country's energy sector.

Speaking at a news conference at the Council of the European Union, the US president said the crisis in Ukraine underscored Europe's need to become less dependent on Russia's rich energy sources.

Acknowledging that additional sanctions could affect Russia's neighboring countries, he said the US remained committed to helping those nations find energy alternatives.

He added, coordination between the US and Europe on economic sanctions against Russia had been excellent and warned that Russia faced deepening isolation if it continued on its current course.

''Russia stands alone,'' he said. ''Russia stood alone when trying to defend its actions at the UN Security Council, the 28 members of the European Union are united, the 28 members of NATO are united, every member of the G7 has imposed sanctions on Russia as we announced on Monday, and the G7 will meet here in Brussels in June – without Russia.''

Obama went on to say that, ''Russian leadership thought the world wouldn't care about their actions in Ukraine, or that they could drive a wedge between the European Union and the United States, they clearly miscalculated.'' 

The leaders also expressed confidence they would complete a Trans-Atlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) that sought to remove trade barriers between the 28-nation bloc and the US. Obama further noted that the deal arrangement would have a Ukraine connection as it could provide a counterweight to Russian energy leverage in Europe.

He added, some countries had legitimate questions about whether free trade deals would benefit them in the long-term, but cautioned sceptics to wait to see what was negotiated before reaching conclusions.

According to Obama, some suspicions about the so-called TTIP had been unjustified. Declaring that he had fought for consumer and environmental protections during his political career he said he would not sign legislation that would weaken those protections.

"I'm confident we can actually shape a trade deal" that is acceptable to critics on consumer protections and climate issues, he said.