EU "cuts off" Russian energy - Member states must stop buying oil and gas by 2027
The European Union has set 2027 as the deadline by which the 27 member states must gradually phase out purchases of Russian energy, particularly from liquefied natural gas (LNG) carriers that continue to arrive on the bloc's shores despite the war in Ukraine.
The cutback will happen gradually. First, with a ban on new, short-term contracts until the end of 2025. In a second phase, long-term contracts, which account for two-thirds of Russian gas, will expire by the end of 2027. Further restrictions will also be introduced to crack down on the shadow fleet that secretly transports Russian oil and to ban imports of Russian uranium and other nuclear materials.
Each member state will be required to draw up a national plan detailing how it intends to remove Russian gas, nuclear power and oil from their energy mix.
All the measures are included in a strategy presented by the European Commission. The roadmap, which must be completed in legislative texts before it can enter into force, was initially expected in the first 100 days of the new Commission, but was delayed several times due to deep uncertainty over Donald Trump's push to start negotiations between Ukraine and Russia.
Russian energy consumption has been at the center of political debate since the start of the Russian invasion, when the EU was suddenly forced to confront its multibillion-euro dependence on Moscow. In response, Brussels adopted unprecedented measures to cut off imports of Russian coal and sea-borne oil, but gas, a major source of revenue for the Kremlin, remained notably spared from sanctions.
Last year, the bloc bought 31.62 billion cubic meters of Russian pipeline gas and 20.05 billion cubic meters of Russian LNG, representing 19% of total gas consumption. Meanwhile, Moscow crude oil still passed through the Druzhba pipeline, which has been exempted from sanctions due to Hungarian pressure.
In total, the EU spent around €23 billion on Russian fossil fuels in 2024, exceeding military support for Ukraine. This imbalance has been a long-standing source of disagreement among member states, which, despite repeated pleas from Kiev, have never managed to find a consensus to completely cut off Russian energy.
Earlier this year, ten EU countries, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Ireland, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Romania and Sweden, signed a joint letter calling for a complete ban on Russian gas, including LNG imports. “Russia’s ability to support the war effort is deeply intertwined with its energy revenues,” the letter said.
In contrast, Hungary and Slovakia joined forces to oppose the penalties, arguing that the move would endanger their national economies and the EU's competitiveness.
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