🇪🇺 🇷🇺 EU Council approves a ban on imports of Russian gas starting in 2027

EU ministers approved the legislation at a meeting in Brussels.

The ban was designed to pass by a qualified majority, bypassing resistance from countries that still depend on Russian energy supplies.

As expected, Slovakia and Hungary voted against it. Budapest has already said it will challenge the decision in the European Court.

Under the approved rules, the EU will stop importing Russian liquefied natural gas by the end of 2026, and pipeline gas by September 30, 2027.

In exceptional cases, the deadline may be postponed — but no later than November 1, 2027 — if a country faces problems filling gas storage facilities ahead of winter.

Before the full-scale war, Russia supplied more than 40% of the EU’s gas imports. By 2025, that share had fallen to around 13%.

The decision by the Council of the European Union marks the end of an era of Europe’s dependence on Russian gas.

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⚡️ 🇪🇺 🔋 Ten European nations agree to Hamburg Declaration. A North Sea offshore wind grid with 100GW capacity will be jointly constructed. Signing Monday. Will power 143 million homes.

Belgium, Denmark, France, Germany, Iceland, Ireland, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway and the UK will today (26 January) sign the Hamburg Declaration – a landmark commitment to deliver 100GW of joint offshore wind projects across shared North Sea waters by 2050. This is enough electricity to power around 143 million homes.

The €9.5 billion pact aims to turn the North Sea into the world’s “largest clean energy reservoir” and mobilise €1 trillion of capital in Europe. It is also expected to create more than 90,000 jobs and reduce power production costs by 30 per cent in the next 15 years.

Three years ago, North Sea nations pledged to build 300GW of offshore wind in the North Sea by 2050 in response to Putin’s illegal invasion of Ukraine and “weaponisation” of Europe’s energy supplies.

A third of that is now slated to come from joint clean-energy projects. These will include new offshore wind “hybrid assets” – wind farms at sea that are directly connected to more than one country through multi-purpose interconnectors (MPIs).

There is already a network of undersea cables that connect the electricity grids of European countries, but the Hamburg Declaration marks the first time that wind farms will be directly linked to multiple nations.

https://www.euronews.com/green/2026/01/26/off-the-fossil-fuel-rollercoaster-10-european-countries-pledge-95bn-for-north-sea-wind-pro

NOW - Ursula von der Leyen, António Costa, and the Indian President arrive in a horse-drawn carriage to attend India's Republic Day Parade.

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NOW - NATO Chief Rutte: "As we speak, billions of dollars' worth of essential American military hardware is flowing into Ukraine, paid for by allies and partners, it is absolutely vital... For 2026, Ukraine has forecast military requirements from donors totaling just over $60B"

@disclosetv

NEW - YE takes out an advert in the WSJ to apologize for his antisemtic comments blaming a medical oversight from a car accident that delayed his biopolar diagnosis and says that he has now found comfort in Reddit forums.

"I lost touch with reality... I said and did things I deeply regret... In that fractured state, I gravitated toward the most destructive symbol I could find, the swastika, and even sold t-shirts bearing it... I regret and am deeply mortified by my actions... I am not a Nazi or an antisemite. I love Jewish people."

Read here: https://www.disclose.tv/id/moi1tux7gc/

@disclosetv

NOW - NATO Chief Rutte: "If anyone thinks here, again, that the European Union or Europe as a whole can defend itself without the U.S., keep on dreaming."

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JUST IN: 🇺🇸 Tucker Carlson suggests Bitcoin could replace the US dollar as the global reserve currency.

@WatcherGuru

JUST IN: 🇺🇸 President Trump announces 25% tariffs on South Korean cars, pharmaceuticals, and lumber for delaying trade deal.

@WatcherGuru

🇬🇧🇮🇷🇸🇦🇰🇼 - The UK is calling on its citizens not to travel within 5 kilometers of the borders with Iran, Saudi Arabia, and Kuwait.

@thewarreporterr

🇵🇱 🇷🇺 🇧🇾 Poland steps up border fortifications under ‘Eastern Shield’ plan

Poland’s armed forces say they secured 60 kilometres of the country’s eastern border in 2025 as part of the Eastern Shield programme, with significantly larger works planned for 2026.

By the end of 2026, nearly 260 km of Poland’s 628 km land border with Russia and Belarus is expected to be secured, representing more than 38 percent of the frontier.

The project involves the construction of anti-tank barriers, the stockpiling of concrete obstacles and barbed wire, and the deployment of reconnaissance and counter-drone systems.

The Baltic states are implementing a similar Baltic Defence Line along their borders with Russia and Belarus, with support from Finland, the United Kingdom, Germany and the United States.

📎 Polskie Radio