Overview

• Under the proposal, new Russian gas contracts would stop in January 2026, short‑term existing contracts would end in June 2026, and long‑term contracts would cease in January 2028.
• Ministers are scheduled to vote on October 20 using qualified‑majority rules, after which EU governments and the European Parliament would negotiate the final text.
• Diplomats say most member states support the plan despite objections from Hungary and Slovakia.
• Technical talks continue on LNG origin verification and whether prior authorisation should be required for cargoes arriving at EU ports.
• A separate sanctions package under discussion could impose a full LNG import ban from January 2027 and add more than 100 shadow‑fleet vessels to EU blacklists.