The European Union has reduced the share of Russian gas in its imports from 45% to 12% in four years. The next goal is to reduce this figure to zero by the end of 2027.
This was stated by European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen during a speech at the plenary session of the European Parliament in Strasbourg, a Babel correspondent reports.
"Four years ago, Russia tried to blackmail us. Back then, 45% of our gas imports came from Russia. Almost overnight, most of the supplies were cut off. But Europe rallied and emerged stronger from it," von der Leyen said.
According to her, after the energy crisis caused by reduced supplies from Russia, the EU has significantly reduced its dependence on Russian fuel.
She stressed that the current EU energy policy should be aimed at reducing dependence on fossil fuel imports. According to the President of the European Commission, more than 70% of electricity in the EU is already produced from domestic clean sources — renewable energy and nuclear generation.
At the same time, Europe is facing new pressures as energy prices rise. In particular, due to global turmoil, gasoline prices have risen by 140% since late February and diesel prices have doubled. Europe’s additional costs for fossil fuel imports, von der Leyen said, have already reached €100 billion since the start of the Iran war.
- In May 2022, the EU put forward the REPowerEU proposal to eliminate dependence on Russian gas by 2030 in response to Russiaʼs full-scale invasion of Ukraine. As early as December 2025, the EU reported that it had agreed on a plan to stop importing Russian gas by 2027.
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