EU law's staged restrictions on Russian gas could complicate a reported U.S. effort to restart deliveries to Europe through Ukraine, a plan EU officials are unlikely to accept, the Kyiv Independent reported Nov. 2.
Regulation (EU) 2026/261 covers pipeline gas and liquefied natural gas (LNG) originating in Russia or exported from there, including indirectly, subject to temporary exemptions. It defines a gas's production country by where it was extracted. That scope raises a legal question for the reported U.S.-intermediary arrangement; the European Commission's Oct. 28 briefing did not assess this specific proposal.
The Wall Street Journal reported that U.S. envoys Jared Kushner and Steve Witkoff raised the concept during September visits to Moscow and Kyiv. People who attended discussions told the Journal that the plan would use a U.S. intermediary to sell Russian gas transported through Ukraine's Soviet-era network. They said the arrangement might give U.S. investors an opportunity to participate.
A senior U.S. official told the Journal that White House officials considered placing sale proceeds in escrow under a third country's jurisdiction, with the stated aim of keeping the Kremlin from directing the income toward its war effort. The Journal said U.S. negotiators presented the concept to European leaders as a way to reduce energy costs. It also reported that transit payments could bring Kyiv revenue and that the plan was intended to help secure an energy ceasefire.
The Kyiv Independent said some EU officials objected to Washington advancing the idea without first seeking the bloc's views. One senior official told the outlet, “That doesn’t mean we will agree to it.” The Kyiv Independent also reported that Ukrainian negotiators proposed payments for gas crossing Ukraine during talks with Russia in Istanbul in 2022, describing them as compensation for Ukraine.
At an Oct. 28 briefing, European Commission energy spokesperson Anna-Kaisa Itkonen said the phase-out would continue “regardless of what happens.” Her response came during an exchange about possible postwar Russian gas flows through Nord Stream and described the EU's general policy, not a formal review of the Ukraine-route plan. Chief spokesperson Paula Pinho said EU law prevents the bloc from resuming Russian gas imports.
Under the regulation, the ban on LNG imports under qualifying long-term contracts starts Jan. 1, 2027. The ban on pipeline gas under qualifying long-term contracts begins Sept. 30, 2027. The date could move to Nov. 1 in a member state if the Commission confirms it is at risk of missing its 2027 gas-storage target.
The Wall Street Journal reported that Russia had rebuffed U.S. efforts to secure an energy ceasefire and that three-way U.S.-Russia-Ukraine peace talks were planned for mid-November in Abu Dhabi.
