U.S. president signs bill banning Russian uranium imports into law - White House

WASHINGTON. May 14 (Interfax) - U.S. President Joe Biden has signed a bill banning Russian uranium imports into law, the White House said in a statement.

"On Monday, May 13, 2024, the president signed into law [...] the Prohibiting Russian Uranium Imports Act, which prohibits the importation of unirradiated, low-enriched uranium that is produced in the Russian Federation or by a Russian entity," the statement said.

National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan said, for his part, the ban "will strengthen our nation's energy and economic security" by lowering "our reliance on Russia for civilian nuclear power."

"It will help secure our energy sector for generations to come. And, building off the unprecedented $2.72 billion in federal funding that Congress recently appropriated at the president's request, it will jumpstart new enrichment capacity in the United States and send a clear message to industry that we are committed to long-term growth in our nuclear sector," Sullivan said.

The bill banning Russian uranium imports has been approved by the U.S. Senate.

According to the U.S. Department of Energy, Russia supplied almost a quarter of enriched uranium to over 90 commercial reactors in the United States, which made it foreign supplier No. 1.