On Monday 2 February, the European Commissioner for Energy, Dan Jørgensen, regretted that Hungary and Slovakia had decided to take legal action against the application of the ‘REPowerEU’ Regulation on the phase-out of Russian fossil fuels, which came into force on the same day (see other news).
At a press conference at the end of a visit to Portugal, he began: “We have said that we will no longer help to indirectly finance Putin’s war in Ukraine by buying gas from Russia. This is a very positive decision”.
“I would of course have preferred if it had been backed by all Member States. Unfortunately, two Member States of the EU do not support this”, he added.
Hungary referred the matter to the Court of Justice of the EU on Monday, arguing that the legal basis of the text (a regulation) could not replace the sanctions regime - adopted unanimously - to target energy imports. Slovakia has also announced its intention to refer the case to the Court.
“They are of course free to do so, but I can assure everyone that the proposal we have put forward is 100% legally sound and that, of course, all Member States must comply with European legislation, even if they do not agree with it. This is the way the European Union works”, reaffirmed Mr Jørgensen.
He also added that the European Commission was “very active” in helping the countries most affected by the end of these low-cost gas imports. (Original version in French by Pauline Denys)