Ambassadors of the countries of the European Union agreed on a plan to phase out Russian gas and oil by 2028. reports Reuters.
The document was supported by almost all EU member states, but Hungary and Slovakia, which remain dependent on Russian energy sources, are against it. If the draft law is adopted at the EU level, these countries will have to prepare national plans to end supplies by 2028.
One of the resolved issues concerns the origin of the liquefied natural gas – whether deliveries should undergo preliminary inspection and additional control by customs authorities at EU ports to confirm that the gas is not Russian.
The decision of the ambassadors means that the draft law will be submitted for consideration to the ministers, who must approve it on October 20. To approve the plan, a “qualified majority” is required – at least 55% of the EU states. After that, the EU countries together with the legislators will agree on the final text. Separately, negotiations are underway on a new package of sanctions against Russia, which may prohibit the import of Russian liquefied gas as early as January 2027, i.e. a year earlier.
We would like to remind you that in May 2025, the European Commission presented a draft “road map” for ending Russian gas imports by the end of 2027. At the same time, Politico reported in June that France and Belgium, which are the largest buyers of Russian LNG in the EU, refused to support the plan, demanding more details about the economic and legal consequences of such a decision.
