US bans Syrian oil imports

The United States said Thursday it will ban all Syrian oil imports and urged other countries to follow suit.

The United States imports very little Syrian oil — about 1,000 barrels a day in 2009, according to the Energy Information Administration. But a multi-country ban on Syrian oil imports is viewed as one of the most effective ways to hit the country’s economy and put a halt to brutality by President Bashar al-Assad's regime.

President Obama signed an executive order Thursday laying out what he called “unprecedented sanctions to deepen the financial isolation of the Assad regime and further disrupt its ability to finance a campaign of violence against the Syrian people.”

The executive order blocks “the importation into the United States of petroleum or petroleum products of Syrian origin.”

Later Thursday morning, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton called on other countries to broaden their sanctions of Syria.

“We will also continue to work with the international community, because if the Syrian people are to achieve their goals, other nations will have to provide support and take actions as well,” Clinton said.

“In just the past two weeks many of Syria's own neighbors and partners in the region have joined the chorus of condemnation. We expect that they and other members of the international community will amplify the steps we are taking, both through their words and their actions.”

European Union ambassadors were slated to meet Friday to discuss imposing new sanctions on Syria, including restricting oil imports, according to The Wall Street Journal.

Clinton has ratcheted up pressure on other countries to boycott Syrian oil in recent weeks.