Budapest and Bratislava to challenge in court the EU’s plan to stop energy imports from Russia
8 December 11:17
The governments of Hungary and Slovakia want to challenge in the European Court of Justice a political agreement that provides for the EU’s refusal to import Russian gas and oil.
Hungarian Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó announced this on social network X, "Komersant Ukrainian" reports.
According to him, as soon as the RePowerEU plan aimed at completely abandoning energy dependence on Russia is adopted next week, Budapest and Bratislava will seek to cancel it through the courts. They will also ask for the resolution to be suspended for the duration of the trial.
“We are taking this step because the ban on Russian oil and gas imports will make it impossible to secure energy supplies to Hungary and Slovakia and will lead to a sharp rise in prices,” the minister added.
In addition, Szijjarto called the regulation a “large-scale legal fraud” because he believes that the plan is a sanction measure that would require unanimous approval. He also insists that the agreement allegedly contradicts the treaties of the European bloc, which state that energy policy is a “national competence.”
What is known about the EU’s plans to abandon gas from Russia
In May 2022, the European Commission presented the REPowerEU plan, which aims to stop imports of Russian oil and gas by EU countries by 2027.
The measures include diversifying oil and gas supplies from other importing countries and developing a “joint procurement mechanism” that will negotiate and conclude gas purchase contracts on behalf of participating member states.
Slovakia and Hungary opposed the plan. Thus, in July 2025, Slovakia blocked the adoption of the 18th package of EU sanctions against Russia because of the REPowerEU plan. Slovakia believes that REPowerEU measures “threaten” the country’s economy and energy security.
on December 3, the European Union and the European Parliament reached a preliminary political agreement on a regulation that provides for a phased ban on imports of Russian natural gas, both pipeline and liquefied natural gas (LNG). The document is a key element of the REPowerEU roadmap. It also envisages a gradual phase-out of oil from Russia.
