Indiana Governor Mike Braun said strikes on shipping in the Black Sea contributed to unnaturally high gas prices

Governor Mike Braun has declared a new energy emergency in the US state of Indiana, citing attacks on shipping linked to the Russia-Ukraine conflict.

In a post on X on Wednesday, Braun said he had signed an executive order extending the suspension of the state's gasoline use and excise taxes, which had been due to be reinstated on Friday, through September 5.

"This new energy emergency is prompted by new disruptions to global oil shipping lanes in recent weeks, in the Black Sea/Kerch Strait as the Russia-Ukraine conflict has escalated into maritime drone battles and the disruption to the Alberta Oil Sands Region from Canadian wildfires," the governor's office said in a statement.

It added that the disruptions had driven fuel prices to "unnatural levels outside the norm of standard economic conditions."

According to the Indiana Capital Chronicle, Braun first partially suspended gasoline taxes in early April after prices surged due to the blockade of the Strait of Hormuz during the US-Israeli war against Iran.

Russia and Ukraine have intensified attacks on ships and port infrastructure in recent weeks in an effort to disrupt each other's logistics. In its latest daily report on Wednesday, the Russian Defense Ministry said it had struck three cargo vessels off the coast of Ukraine's Odessa Region that it said were carrying military equipment.

On June 25, Ukrainian leader Vladimir Zelensky announced what he called a 40-day campaign to pressure Russia into "ending the war." The announcement coincided with systematic drone strikes on Russian energy facilities and warehouses belonging to Wildberries, Russia's equivalent of Amazon. Moscow responded by stepping up its own attacks on Ukrainian ports and vessels.

Russia has repeatedly warned that continued aid to Ukraine will only prolong the conflict and that sanctions imposed on Moscow are also hurting Western countries and helping to drive up oil prices. The Russian Foreign Ministry similarly condemned the US-Israeli attack on Iran, warning in March that the Middle East conflict was "directly threatening global energy security."

(RT.com)