The European Commission will next month propose legal measures to phase out the EU’s imports of all Russian gas and liquefied natural gas (LNG) by the end of 2027, it said on Tuesday.
Under the plans published ahead of a June announcement, Brussels will seek to ban imports of Russian gas and LNG under both new deals and existing long‑term contracts by December 31, 2027. In addition, it will propose a prohibition on Russian gas spot purchases and any fresh Russian supply agreements by the end of 2025.
“Since February 2022, we’ve actually spent more money buying fossil fuels from Russia in the EU than we’ve given in aid to Ukraine,” said EU Energy Commissioner Dan Jørgensen. “Obviously, that will not stand.”
The Commission’s proposals reflect its determination to sever decades‑old energy ties with Russia in the wake of Moscow’s full‑scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. Around 19% of Europe’s gas still comes from Russia today down from roughly 45% before the war via pipelines such as TurkStream and spot LNG shipments.
Brussels has signalled its readiness to replace Russian volumes by increasing purchases of U.S. LNG, a shift President Donald Trump has urged to reduce the EU’s trade surplus with the United States. New U.S. and Qatari LNG projects due online from 2026 will help cushion the impact on EU energy prices, the Commission said.
Any ban will require approval by the European Parliament and a qualified majority of member states. Hungary and Slovakia both heavily reliant on Russian pipeline supplies have opposed gas sanctions, warning that cutting off Russian energy could drive up prices.
Commissioner Jørgensen indicated that the legal underpinning for the ban would invoke “force majeure” an unforeseeable event freeing buyers from contractual obligations. However, experts caution that unilaterally invoking force majeure could expose EU firms to arbitration or penalty payments under “take‑or‑pay” Gazprom contracts.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov dismissed the plan as “against the EU’s own interests,” arguing it would force Europeans to buy more expensive U.S. supplies. “One can only hope the next generation of European politicians will evaluate the situation more soberly,” he said.
Brussels has already sanctioned Russian coal and most oil imports but stopped short of gas due to the need for unanimity among all 27 member states. In tandem with the gas measures, the Commission will propose trade restrictions on Russian enriched uranium, effectively imposing a levy on such imports.
European buyers imported some 32 billion cubic metres (bcm) of Russian pipeline gas and 20 bcm of Russian LNG in 2024. Two‑thirds of that volume flowed under long‑term contracts; the remainder was spot purchases. The EU plans to complement the phase‑out with an accelerated rollout of renewable energy and greater energy efficiency to meet its climate targets and bolster energy security.
