BRUSSELS — The EU should consider ending its Russian gas imports in 2026, a year earlier than planned, the European Parliament’s chief negotiator for Brussels’ phaseout bill told POLITICO.
The European Commission, the EU’s executive branch, last month unveiled a landmark legal proposal to end the bloc’s Russian gas imports by 2027, seeking to sever the EU’s final energy ties to Moscow.
But “we would be interested in looking at” a 2026 deadline, said Ville Niinistö, a Greens MEP who will helm the Parliament’s work on the bill in the coming months.
“The Parliament’s role here is to scrutinize the proposal and make sure that it’s as rigid as possible,” he added. “Legally speaking, we are going to check … [whether] those timetables are strict enough or can they be hastened.”
The bill comes as the EU strains to quit Russian energy imports more than three years after Moscow’s all-out invasion of Ukraine.
So far, the bloc has slashed its Russian pipeline gas supplies by around two-thirds and banned imports of seaborne coal and oil — but has struggled to wean itself off remaining pipeline flows and is still buying large volumes of liquefied natural gas. It is also facing calls to return to Moscow’s cheap energy as its economy falters.
If successful, the new proposal would force EU energy firms to gradually break off their long-term deals with Moscow, starting this year and ending in 2027. It also includes measures that bolster monitoring of Russian gas entering the bloc and asks EU capitals to submit plans detailing how they will quit Moscow’s energy.
But for Niinistö, that doesn’t go far enough — notably in omitting Russian oil from the ban.
“We are also interested in … [the] potential possibility of including oil more strictly in the legal language as well,” the former Finnish environment minister said, with a phaseout date of 2027 “at a minimum.”
Amid ongoing fears the bill could trigger an avalanche of lawsuits from Russian energy firms, Niinistö also said he would “look at” its legal basis “to make sure that there are no undue legal consequences for European companies.” The Commission declined to comment.
Before the proposal becomes law, the MEP will have to forge a compromise among the Parliament’s various political groups — a feat he hopes to accomplish by “early fall” and by talking “with everyone,” including Russia-friendly far-right and far-left lawmakers.
Then, he will have to hash out a deal with EU countries, where the bill faces stiff opposition from Hungary and Slovakia, who remain deeply reliant on Russian oil and gas. The bill doesn’t need their backing to pass, but sidelining them risks torpedoing other related laws in process where they hold vetoes.
While both countries have demanded money in exchange for switching suppliers, the proposal currently offers no financial incentives for shifting away from Moscow. Niinistö, though, acknowledged that cash to bring them on board will inevitably come under “discussion.”
In the meantime, he urged countries and MEPs to put national interests aside and make the bill a reality.
“We should have a broader European interest in mind,” he said.
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