Well, no surprise, it looks like the Biden Administration is trying its best to choke off a major supplier of inexpensive ammunition to the United States — actually, an entire country’s supply. It may take a few months, but the decision will lead to more ammunition shortages and higher prices. A news item on the NRA-ILA.org site goes into more detail:
The Department of State announced that it will soon prohibit the importation of Russian ammunition into the United States. According to a release on the Department of State’s website, “[n]ew and pending permit applications for the permanent importation of firearms and ammunition manufactured or located in Russia will be subject to a policy of denial.”
While the new policy appears to prohibit the importation of both firearms and ammunition, the importation of Russian origin firearms was already heavily restricted under past executive policies. The primary effect of this new policy will be on Russian origin ammunition.
The State Department claims that it is imposing these “sanctions on the Russian Federation over its use of a “Novichok” nerve agent in the August 2020 poisoning of Russian opposition figure Aleksey Navalny.” While that may be a viable reason for the United States government to sanction the Russian Federation, the ammunition import restriction seems more aimed at punishing American gun owners and businesses than as a foreign policy tool to influence the Russian Federation.
Ammunition exports to the United States are only a small percentage of the GDP of the Russian Federation, but Russian origin ammo makes up a large part of the American ammunition supply. American gun owners were already suffering from a market where demand was exceeding available supply. This new move by the Biden Administration will severely worsen the present supply problems.
The release goes on to note that the new policy will take effect upon the publication of a Federal Register notice expected on September 7, 2021, and they will remain in place for a minimum of 12 months. The sanctions can only be lifted after a 12-month period if the Executive Branch determines and certifies to Congress that Russia has met several conditions . . . including (1) providing reliable assurances that it will not use chemical weapons in violation of international law, (2) it is not making preparations to use chemical weapons in the future, (3) it is willing to allow international inspectors to verify those assurances, and (4) it is making restitution to Mr. Navalny.
While this delayed implementation date may seem to make a rush to approve new ammunition shipments possible, it’s not clear that ATF will provide any type of rush approval for the Form 6s necessary to lawfully import ammunition into the United States. These forms often take six or more weeks to get approved, so ATF delays may prevent any new shipments being approved for importation.
All due respect to Mr. Navalny’s family, but this move has nothing to do with him. His poisoning is just a fig leaf for the Biden Administration to attack American gun owners.
Great! I don’t want to spend my ca$h supporting an overseas sleazy government. I pay enough taxes to support the sleazy government here in the USA. Plus, perhaps this will be the wake up call for the USA ammunition makers to grow their businesses to meet the ever growing demand.
Well said. Real Americans don’t support the Russian government and their military sales.
I don’t understand why people want to give their hard earned money to a country that wants to overthrow ours… after the NRA was infiltrated by the Russian secret services… I have no idea why they are having crocodile tears. It’s just un-American to support Russia. What would your father have thought if you wanted to give communists and socialists money? You complain bitterly about AOC, yet want to give money to Russians. Somewhere along the line, the NRA got confused about patriotism.
Go for it Joe. Not thrilled about current ammo prices but I am definitely behind any policy that thwarts Vlad’s world plan. Gangster policies on the world stage and no consequences? What would Mr. Woodard do if he were President? Give Vlad a pass? All Russian imports should be eliminated from our shores. It does no good to simply complain…what is the solution?
100%
Lol, this is a obvious Strike by Biden to hurt the 2A. Thousands of products from Russia, Biden could have Chosen, but he choose Ammunition. Ironic that a Marxist/Socialist US President bans Ammo from Russia, but gifted one of our Worst enemies, the Taliban with over 20 billion dollars of US weapons and supplies. And they have already vowed to share them with Iran another enemy to the US against US soldiers in Northern Iraq. American shooters in every state benefited from the sale of Russian ammo and the taxes made off of the ammo sales benefited the US. It is no question who Biden is after, Most especially with the greatest ammo shortage in history. And the last one under the Marxist Obama.