EU doubts ability to speed up abandonment of oil and gas from Russia

The European Union is unlikely to be able to abandon Russian oil and gas before 2027, despite a US request to speed up the process, Politico reports, citing two EU diplomatic sources.

In May, the European Commission presented a plan to gradually phase out Russian energy by 2027. US Energy Secretary Chris Wright suggested that European countries do this earlier, but “there are few who want to do this,” the publication’s sources say.

"Member states [of the EU] need time to adapt and find an alternative [energy] source," one of the sources said.

The publication calls Europe's refusal of Russian oil a task of medium complexity. For most EU countries, this is not a very difficult task, the article says. It cites data according to which in 2024 , Russia's share in European oil imports fell to 3% after 27% in 2021.

“Further progress” is hampered by Hungary and Slovakia, which have been granted an exception to sanctions against Russian energy sources, but instead of searching for alternative sources, Hungary has increased its dependence on oil from Russia, while Slovakia’s remains almost 100 percent, the publication points out.

The US demands will become an additional lever for the EU to pressure Hungary and Slovakia to reduce their oil dependence on Russia, according to European officials interviewed by Politico. US Senator Lindsey Graham, co-author of anti-Russian sanctions, previously publicly stated that Budapest and Bratislava will face “consequences” if they continue to buy Russian oil.

Moscow considers Western sanctions illegitimate. The Kremlin has called US demands to end trade relations with Russia, including oil supplies, illegal threats.

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