Biden doesn't rule out banning Russian oil exports: 'Nothing is off the table'

• President Joe Biden said Wednesday he is open to the idea of banning Russian oil exports.
• "Nothing is off the table," Biden said when asked whether he would consider barring oil exports from Russia over the country's invasion of Ukraine.

President Joe Biden on Wednesday said that he is open to the idea of banning Russian oil exports as a punishment for Russian President Vladimir Putin's invasion of Ukraine.

"Nothing is off the table," Biden told reporters on the White House lawn when asked whether he would consider barring oil exports from Russia — one of the world's largest oil producers — according to a White House pool report.

The US, United Kingdom, and the European Union have already imposed a slew of severe sanctions against Russia since it attacked Ukraine a week ago.

"Putin is now isolated from the world more than he has ever been," Biden said as he delivered his first State of the Union address on Tuesday, promising that the Russian president "has no idea what's coming."

Biden announced during the address that the US will close its airspace to Russian planes.

Meanwhile, when asked on Wednesday by reporters whether Russian forces were deliberately targeting civilian areas in Ukraine, Biden replied, "It's clear they are."

He also said it was too "early to say" if Russia was committing war crimes in Ukraine.

"We are following it very closely," Biden said.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky called Russia's missile strike on the city of Kharkiv's Freedom Square a "war crime" and "state terrorism" this week.

Earlier this week, the US State Department accused Russia of "widespread" human rights abuses in Ukraine, while top human rights groups warned that bombings against Ukrainian citizens may be considered war crimes.