On March 18, 2026, European Commissioner Dan Jorgensen officially rejected the proposal to resume purchases of Russian energy resources. According to TASS, the EU representative described calls to restore imports as a mistake and reaffirmed the bloc's commitment to completely ceasing Russian energy imports in the long term.

Jorgensen emphasized that the European Commission has taken a definitive stance on the region's future energy balance. As the EU commissioner noted, "The message is clear: in the future, we will not import a single molecule from Russia."

Earlier, Belgian Prime Minister Bart De Wever characterized the current state of the European industry, particularly the chemical sector, as critical. According to his report, the number of closed enterprises in the industry has increased sixfold over the past four years. As a result of the energy crisis, Europe has lost 10% of its production capacity.

On March 14, 2026, Belgium's prime minister called for a diplomatic resolution to the conflict in Ukraine to save the economy. However, Belgian Foreign Minister Maxime Prevot criticized the initiative, accusing his colleague of undermining European solidarity and weakening the bloc's overall political strategy.