EU Announces Historic Ban on Russian Fossil Fuels by 2027

WISE NEWS PRESS / BRUSSELS, BELGIUM — DEC. 3, 2025

The European Union has officially declared the end of its decades-long energy reliance on Russia, announcing a binding plan to completely ban Russian gas and oil imports by 2027.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, International Energy Agency (IEA) Executive Director Fatih Birol, and EU Energy Commissioner Dan Jorgensen revealed the historic roadmap at a joint press conference in Brussels. The leaders framed the decision as a definitive step toward energy independence and a direct blow to Moscow's war economy.

Von der Leyen: "A Good Day for Europe"

President von der Leyen emphasized the success of the REPowerEU initiative, noting that imports of Russian crude oil have already plummeted from 26% to just 2%. She highlighted that the bloc has overcome "the worst energy crisis in decades" through diversification, savings, and renewable investments.

"At the beginning of the war, we were paying Russia 12 billion euros a month for fossil fuels. Now, that figure has dropped to 1.5 billion euros per month. It is still too much. We aim to reduce this to zero," von der Leyen stated. She also reaffirmed the EU's commitment to supporting Ukraine's energy infrastructure against Russian attacks.

Birol: Ending a Half-Century Dependency

IEA Chief Fatih Birol described the decision as a geopolitical turning point. "For decades, Russia was Europe's number one energy supplier... And today, we are coming to the end of this story," Birol said.

He recalled that Europe's shift toward Russian energy began in the 1970s as an alternative to Middle Eastern oil, a move that eventually led to excessive dependency. Birol stressed that diversification is the "number one golden rule" for energy security and praised the 40% increase in renewable capacity over the last three years.

The Phase-Out Timeline

EU Energy Commissioner Dan Jorgensen outlined the strict timeline for the complete decoupling:

• Six weeks after regulation: New short and long-term gas contracts will be banned.

  
  

• April & June 2026: Existing short-term LNG and pipeline contracts will be terminated.

• Jan 1, 2027: Existing long-term LNG contracts will end.

• Dec 31, 2027: All remaining long-term pipeline contracts will be halted.

"Today, we are turning off the taps of Russian gas," Jorgensen declared, adding that a legislative proposal to ban all Russian oil imports will be introduced early next year, to be finalized by the end of 2027 at the latest.

www.wisenewspress.com