“The draft law on a permanent ban on supplies of russian oil to the European Union has been postponed, primarily due to rising fuel prices caused by the war in the Middle East”, - Euronews writes on March 25.
It is emphasized that the delay was influenced by American-Israeli strikes on Iran, which disrupted energy markets and led to a blockade of the Strait of Hormuz – a vital artery through which up to now 1/5 of the world’s oil and liquefied natural gas had been transported daily.
The draft law, part of the REPowerEU roadmap, was initially planned to be presented on April 15, but this event has now been removed from the calendar.
“I cannot name a new date. I can only assure you that we still intend to submit this proposal”, - a statement by the Commission’s energy spokesperson, Anna-Kaisa Itkonen, is quoted.
“The fact is that the war in the Middle East continues to cause shocks in the energy market, keeping the price of Brent per barrel above $100. One should not forget the tense standoff with Hungary and Slovakia (two EU member states that still buy russian oil) over the soviet-era Druzhba pipeline”, - Euronews writes.