The foreign ministers of Hungary and Slovakia have said their countries have decided to sue the European Union over a plan to completely ban Russian gas imports once the law comes into force, Politico reports.
Hungarian Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó wrote on the X on the 26th of February that the country would use all legal means to get the ban lifted, adding that a ban on Russian gas imports was against Hungarian interests and would significantly increase the cost of energy consumed by Hungarian families.
EU lawmakers and leaders agreed in December to completely end purchases of Russian gas by the end of 2027, and a similar law would apply to Russian oil imports.
European leaders approved the law on the 26th of January, but Slovakia and Hungary, which are heavily dependent on Russian fossil fuels, voted against the ban, saying it would dramatically increase energy prices.
The Hungarians said they would take legal action against the EU once the law comes into force,
which could happen in early February. Szijjártó has repeatedly vowed to take the bloc to court, but this is the first time he has given a specific deadline. He criticized the EU for using legal tricks to pass a law that is more of a trade restriction than a sanction, thus bypassing the need for unanimity.
Slovakia’s Foreign Minister Juraj Blanár also said the country would take the country to court, but did not give a specific time frame for when that might happen. Blanár stressed that solutions that do not reflect the capabilities and specific situation of each individual country cannot be accepted.
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