Hungary challenges EU ban on Russian gas at EU Court of Justice

Hungary has challenged the regulation banning Russian energy imports to the EU in the European Court of Justice, according to Péter Szijjártó, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade, as reported by MTI.

The decision prohibiting EU member states from purchasing Russian crude oil and natural gas from 2027 was officially published on Monday.

"I would like to clearly state that from Hungary's point of view, there are only more expensive and less reliable solutions. Without Russian crude oil and natural gas, neither the security of the country's energy supply nor maintaining the results of the utility cost reduction can be guaranteed," Szijjártó said.

According to the minister, the lawsuit is likely to last between one and two years.

It was last week that the Council of the European Union adopted the regulation about gradually phasing out Russian gas from the EU by the end of 2027. In the vote, representatives of 24 of the 27 member states voted in favor, while Hungary and Slovakia voted against and Bulgaria abstained (the latter is effectively considered a polite no). The legislation was adopted through the ordinary legislative procedure, where a qualified majority among governments is sufficient. In such cases, there can be no veto, and a blocking minority would require at least 13 governments or four governments representing 35 percent of the EU's population.