On October 20, the Council of the European Union said that the EU member states supported the proposal to gradually stop importing Russian natural gas by January 2028.

At the EU Council meeting held in Luxembourg that day, EU energy ministers approved the relevant proposal. As of January 1, 2026, the EU prohibits internal parties from entering into new contracts with Russia for imported natural gas; At the same time, a transition period is reserved for existing contracts, with short-term contracts lasting until June 17, 2026 and long-term contracts terminating before January 1, 2028. The proposal also needs to be approved by the European Parliament.

Hungarian Foreign and Economic Minister Seyardo Peter told reporters that the actual impact of the proposal is that Hungary¡¯s energy security will be completely undermined.

Since the outbreak of the Russia-Ukraine conflict, the EU has significantly reduced imports of natural gas from Russia through pipelines, but some European countries have increased the amount of Russian liquefied natural gas imported by sea. According to EU estimates, Russian natural gas still accounts for about 13% of EU imports, with an annual value of more than 15 billion euros.