Commission President Ursula von der Leyen announced that the European Commission will propose an earlier end to imports of Russian fossil fuels into EU countries. The announcement was made on the night of Wednesday, September 17, after a phone call with US President Donald Trump.
“The Commission will soon present its 19th package of sanctions, targeting crypto, banks, and energy. Russia’s war economy, sustained by revenues from fossil fuels, is financing the bloodshed in Ukraine. To put an end to it, the Commission will propose speeding up the phase-out of Russian fossil imports,” wrote Ms von der Leyen on social media.
End of Russian imports. But when?
Currently it is not clear, however, what specific date von der Leyen is counting on. The Commission’s proposal of June 2025 mentioned that Russian fossil imports should be phased-out until the end of 2027.
On Saturday, 13 September, Mr Trump said he was prepared to impose significant sanctions on Russia if all NATO countries did so and if they stopped buying Russian oil. If NATO does not do as Trump wants, he believes it is wasting his time.
Among NATO countries, Turkey is a major importer of Russian oil. Worldwide, only China and India buy more oil from Russia. Some other NATO members, namely Slovakia and Hungary, are still dependent on Russian oil imports.
More than three years after Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine, the European Union still import billions of euro worth of Russian energy and commodities, ranging from oil and liquefied natural gas to enriched uranium.
