Ex-President Petro Poroshenko and members of his European Solidarity opposition party submitted a bill on Jan. 7 banning the transit of Russian oil and gas through Ukraine's territory during martial law.
The move came after Ukraine decided not to prolong a deal on the transit of Russian gas to the EU through Ukrainian pipelines past Dec. 31, 2024. Ukraine continues to facilitate the transit of Russian oil via the Druzhba pipeline, fulfilling a contract valid until the end of 2029.
"Every day, the Druzhba oil pipeline transports 300,000 barrels of Russian oil... Every day when the halt to Russian oil transit is delayed, tens of millions of dollars flow to Russia," Poroshenko said at a press briefing.
"In 2025 in total, Russia plans to receive $7.5 billion only from the sale of oil through Ukrainian transit."
The text of the bill, signed by Poroshenko and 17 other European Solidarity MPs, has not yet been published. The legislation must be considered by relevant committees, approved in two readings, and signed by the president before becoming law, potentially a lengthy process.
Revenues from fossil fuel exports represent a significant part of Russia's federal budget and play a key role in fueling its war machine in Ukraine.
The EU banned the import of Russian seaborne crude oil and certain petroleum products in June 2022 as part of sanctions imposed in response to the full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
Certain member states were given exemptions due to their dependency on Russian supplies, allowing them to continue buying Russian pipeline oil. Russian crude continues to flow to Hungary, Czechia, and Slovakia through the southern branch of the Druzhba pipeline, which also runs through Ukraine.
Halting the oil transit might fuel further discord between Ukraine and Hungary with Slovakia. The two EU countries, led by Moscow-friendly populists, have already lashed out against Kyiv over its decision not to prolong gas transit, claiming it undermines their energy security.
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