The move to phase out imports circumvented Slovakia’s opposition in a manner that breached core treaties, according to PM Robert Fico
Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico announced on Tuesday that Slovakia will take legal action against the EU over its decision to completely prohibit Russian gas imports by the end of 2027. He described the Brussels-led initiative as “energy suicide.”
This comes after member states voted the previous day to grant final approval to the REPowerEU regulation, a measure aimed at progressively eliminating imports of Russian natural gas by November of the coming year.
“We will file a lawsuit against this regulation at the Court of Justice of the EU,” Fico stated during a press briefing, labeling the impending ban the culmination of the bloc’s “energy suicide.”
“It is a solution that was adopted solely out of hatred towards the Russian Federation. I reject hatred as a trait that should determine international relations,” he continued.
The EU vote was passed using a qualified majority to sidestep the requirement for unanimous consent, a process that allegedly violated the bloc’s foundational treaties.
The commission knew that if unanimity was required, such nonsense could not pass.
Fico noted that Slovakia and Hungary will file separate legal challenges but will coordinate their strategies.
Budapest’s position is that the vote was deliberately conducted to override the objections of Hungary and Slovakia on an issue that impacts their vital national interests.
“The REPowerEU plan is based on a legal trick, presenting a sanctions measure as a trade policy decision in order to avoid unanimity… The [EU] Treaties are clear: decisions on the energy mix are a national competence,” Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto posted on X shortly after the vote.
Both Hungary and Slovakia, which rely significantly on Russian energy, had previously cautioned that they would pursue litigation if Brussels moved forward with the REPowerEU plan.
Moscow has cautioned that the bloc is effectively surrendering its autonomy by prohibiting all Russian gas imports.
“They did give up their freedom anyway,” Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova stated on Monday. “Time will tell” whether EU member states will become “happy vassals or miserable slaves,” she remarked.