EU Council approves full phase-out of Russian oil and gas, Hungary and Slovakia vote against

On Monday 20 October, the EU Council approved the RePowerEU mechanism, which envisages a complete phase-out of Russian fossil fuels by the European Union, by a large majority. Hungary and Slovakia voted against.

"Only two countries voted against. A qualified majority was required for approval," an EU official told European Pravda correspondent, specifying that the two member states were Hungary and Slovakia.

The proposal provides for a legally binding ban on all imports of Russian gas, including LNG, after 1 January 2028.

The first stage of the ban will take effect on 1 January 2026, with exemptions for existing contracts signed before 17 June this year: short-term contracts until 17 June 2026 and long-term contracts until 1 January 2028.

Amendments to existing contracts will only be permitted for certain operational reasons and may not lead to an increase in import volumes. However, landlocked countries (including Hungary and Slovakia) will receive some additional concessions.

The EU Council also approved documentation and procedural requirements for the import of non-Russian gas that are simpler than the European Commission's original proposal.

Both Russian and non-Russian gas imports will be subject to a pre-approval procedure: one month in advance for Russian gas and five days for non-Russian gas.

In the case of LNG imports containing a mix of Russian and other gas, the documentation must indicate the respective proportions.

To reduce the administrative burden, the pre-approval procedure will not apply to certain countries meeting specific criteria. The European Commission must draw up a list of these countries within five days of the new rules taking effect.

An additional monitoring mechanism will also be introduced to prevent covert imports of Russian gas into the EU during transit.

The plan requires member states to submit national energy import diversification plans to Brussels, outlining how they intend to achieve this and what challenges they expect. Countries that can demonstrate they no longer import Russian gas or oil will be exempt from this requirement.

This is not the final decision – the EU Council will now begin talks with the European Parliament to agree on the final text.

The EU is also continuing to negotiate its 19th Russia sanctions package.

Read more: How Russian energy still reaches the EU and how Brussels plans to stop it