Slovakia, Hungary to sue EU over Russian gas ban

BRATISLAVE, Slovakia (AFP) — Slovakia will file a lawsuit against the European Union’s decision to phase out Russian natural gas imports, Prime Minister Robert Fico said Tuesday, following a similar announcement from neighboring Hungary.

Both are landlocked central European countries with close ties to the Kremlin and have remained heavily reliant on Russian fossil fuels despite Moscow’s invading Ukraine in 2022.

The two countries previously used their veto powers to obtain exemptions from EU energy sanctions against Russia.

But other member states decided to ban all imports of Russian gas before the end of 2027 under a mechanism requiring agreement from  only a qualified majority of countries — circumventing opposition from Bratislava and Budapest.

“We are filing a lawsuit,” Fico told a media briefing a day after the measure got final approval, saying that “ideology and hatred towards Russia” was making Slovakia lose “everything.”

Slovakia plans to coordinate its legal efforts with Hungary, though the two countries cannot file a joint lawsuit, he said.

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, who is facing a tough reelection fight in April, on Monday reiterated his intention to sue the EU over the Russian gas ban.

In a Facebook post, he called the ban a threat to “utility price reduction,” his signature policy aimed at capping household energy prices.

“There can be no compromise on this,” Orban said.

Hungary previously indicated it would challenge the decision on the grounds that it was “essentially” a sanction, which requires unanimous approval from EU member states.

The European Commission in response said banning Russian gas in Europe was a “historic moment.”

Spokeswoman Paula Pinho said the ban was legally sound, adding: “We are … very confident that we are in a position to defend the legislation that has been widely endorsed by the member states.”

Only Hungary and Slovakia voted against the law, while Bulgaria abstained. All other EU member states supported it.

—

By Agence France-Presse