Hungary will challenge the European Union’s plan to phase out all Russian oil and gas by 2027 and take the case to the European Court of Justice, Prime Minister Viktor Orbán announced on Friday.

Orbán said the EU is trying to bypass Hungary’s veto power over sanctions on Russian energy by using trade rules in its plan. He described the move as a violation of European law and warned that the EU “will pay a very high price for this.”

Hungary is heavily dependent on Russian fossil fuels and has previously sought exemptions and threatened to veto EU sanctions since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022.

Last week, Orbán met with US President Donald Trump in Washington and secured an exemption from US sanctions on two Russian energy companies supplying Hungary. The exemption covers gas from the TurkStream pipeline and oil from the Druzhba pipeline. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the waiver will last one year. Hungary also agreed to purchase US liquefied natural gas (LNG) in contracts worth around $600 million.

Orbán said continued access to Russian energy is “vital” for Hungary and warned that cutting it off could lead to an economic collapse. He added that the government is exploring other ways to avoid the EU’s planned energy phase-out but did not provide details.

The EU’s plan requires member states to end all Russian energy imports gradually. Short-term and new contracts must be banned by the end of 2025, and long-term contracts, which make up two-thirds of Russian gas imports, must end by 2027. The plan also includes measures to stop illegal shipments of Russian oil and imports of Russian nuclear materials.

In 2024, EU countries spent an estimated €23 billion on Russian fossil fuels, more than the bloc’s military support for Ukraine. Disagreements among member states have delayed a complete phase-out of Russian energy. (ILKHA)