EU plan to ban Russian gas imports has loopholes - Lithuanian minister

VILNIUS - The European Commission's plan to phase out Russian gas imports by the end of 2027 has loopholes that could be exploited not only by Hungary and Slovakia, which are closer to the Kremlin diplomatically, but also by other countries, Lithuanian Energy Minister Zygimantas Vaiciunas said on Friday.

Vaiciunas said the plan contains vague exemptions under which EU countries could keep buying Russian gas.

"One of the loopholes that had probably not been expected earlier is Article 15 of the regulation, which states that if there are supply security issues in one or more EU countries, the Commission may grant exemptions for Russian gas imports," the minister told BNS. "This is probably the most concerning provision, because there are no defined criteria."

"It's a rather abstract provision, but it potentially leaves a lot of room for interpretation. We understand perfectly well that some member states will try to use this option as broadly as possible," he added.

On Tuesday, the EU's executive body unveiled its proposal to completely ban Russian gas imports by the end of 2027, ending decades of dependence.

The Commission proposes prohibiting Russian gas imports under new contracts as of January 1, 2026 and imports under existing short-term contracts by June 17 next year.

All remaining imports would be banned by the end of 2027.

The plan relies on trade and energy laws - rather than sanctions - to ban imports from Russia, a move aimed at sidestepping potential opposition from Slovakia and Hungary.

The proposal still needs approval from the European Council and the European Parliament.

According to EU data, Russia supplied 19 percent of the bloc's gas last year, down from 45 percent before the war.

Last year, 32 billion cubic meters of gas entered the EU via the TurkStream pipeline, and another 20 billion cubic meters through liquefied natural gas (LNG) shipments.