Turning the page 'for good': Von der Leyen says EU agreed to cut energy ties with Russia

"This is the dawn of a new era, the era of Europe's full energy independence from Russia, many believe this would be impossible," von der Leyen told reporters in Brussels, stressing that the deal marks the end of decades-long energy reliance on Moscow.

According to the European Commission, EU imports of Russian gas, both LNG and pipeline, have dropped from 45% at the start of the war in Ukraine to 13% today. Coal imports have fallen from 51% to zero, while crude oil imports slid from 26% to 2%.

Von der Leyen said joint efforts under REPowerEU helped the bloc "overcome the worst energy crisis in decades," highlighting that the EU diversified suppliers, signed new energy partnerships, and accelerated investment in renewables and nuclear power.

"Today, half of our electricity comes from renewables, and if you look at the low carbon energy so nuclear and renewables, it's 74% and this is just the beginning," she said.

She also underlined that slashing Russian energy imports has substantially reduced Moscow's revenues used to finance its war on Ukraine.

Payments for Russian fossil fuels fell from €12 billion per month at the start of the war to €1.5 billion today. "Still too much. We aim to bring it down to zero," she added.

Von der Leyen said the EU is continuing to support Ukraine's electricity system, having delivered over 16,000 generators and transformers and supplying more than 2 gigawatts of power into the Ukrainian grid.

International Energy Agency (IEA) Executive Director Fatih Birol also welcomed the agreement, saying Europe is "drawing a line under a saga that began over half a century," during which Russia grew to become the continent's dominant energy supplier.

Praising Europe's rapid clean-energy rollout, Birol said renewable energy generation increased by 40% in the last three years, describing it "an unbelievable growth", and noted that several EU countries have reconsidered previous nuclear phase-out plans.

A statement said the EU will "effectively and permanently" stop the import of Russian gas and move towards the phaseout of Russian oil under the provisional political agreement reached by the European Parliament and European Council.

The bloc, according to the statement, remains committed to ensure the phase out of all remaining imports from Russia by the end of 2027.

The agreement also ensures a “gradual but permanent” end of Russian gas, with LNG imports phased out by Dec. 31, 2026 and pipeline gas by September 2027.