The Experts Club think tank has analyzed European countries’ responses to the fuel crisis. European countries’ responses to the 2026 fuel crisis have so far been mixed. Some governments are directly intervening in the fuel market by restricting exports, introducing price caps, and releasing reserves. Others are limiting themselves to price monitoring and coordination at the EU and G7 levels, trying not to provoke a shortage with even tougher measures.
Serbia has chosen the most aggressive form of intervention. The authorities have temporarily suspended exports of oil, gasoline, and diesel until March 19, explaining that this is to protect the domestic market from shortages and price spikes. Reuters notes that Serbia had already been controlling fuel prices since February 2022, meaning that the current decision is a continuation of a more interventionist regulatory model.
Hungary has opted for a mixed scenario. On the one hand, Budapest has introduced a price cap on gasoline and diesel for cars registered in Hungary. On the other hand, the government decided to use state reserves, and the Minister of Economy, according to Hungarian media reports, also announced a reduction in excise duties and a ban on the export of some petroleum products. This is a typical example of a combined anti-crisis scheme, where the authorities simultaneously try to keep retail prices down and maintain the physical availability of fuel on the market.
Croatia has chosen a softer approach—limiting maximum retail prices for a two-week period. The government has set a maximum price of EUR1.50 per liter for Eurosuper, EUR1.55 for diesel, and EUR0.89 for “blue diesel,” and has also limited prices for liquefied gas. Zagreb has stated outright that without this measure, diesel would cost EUR 1.72 per liter and gasoline EUR 1.55. This means that Croatia is trying not to isolate the market, but to soften the final effect on households and businesses.
Slovakia and, to some extent, the Czech Republic have focused not on retail regulation but on supporting physical supplies. After the failure of supplies via Druzhba, Slovakia approved the use of 250,000 tons of oil from strategic reserves for refining, while Hungary and Slovakia began negotiations on the use of reserves back in February. The Czech Republic, in turn, announced its readiness to send small volumes of oil to Slovakia via the eastern Druzhba pipeline.
The UK has not yet introduced price caps or export bans. Treasury Secretary Rachel Reeves said the government was monitoring the situation closely and warned retailers that it would not allow “excessive profits” amid the oil shock. This approach is closer to a supervisory model: the authorities are signaling to the market that they are ready to tighten control over the behavior of sellers, but are not moving to direct price administration.
At the pan-European level, caution prevails for now. The G7 and the EU are discussing possible measures, including the use of strategic reserves, tax changes, and carbon price adjustments, but no decision on coordinated release of reserves has been made yet. France, as chair of the G7, says that “all options are on the table,” but acknowledges that there is no immediate shortage in Europe.
The European Commission, for its part, points to the structural vulnerability of Europe, which imports more than 90% of its oil and about 80% of its gas.
The main conclusion for Europe now is that countries are responding differently depending on their own vulnerability. Balkan and Central European countries, which are dependent on imports and specific supply routes, tend to act faster and more aggressively — through bans, price caps, and reserves. The large economies of Western Europe are still favoring coordination, market pressure, and preparing tools in case the situation worsens. But if the oil shock drags on, the current targeted measures could turn into a broader wave of European intervention in the fuel market.
In the first half of 2024, the National Health Service of Ukraine (NHSU) will conduct scheduled monitoring of 63 contracted healthcare facilities.
According to the agency on its website, the list of medical institutions to be monitored was determined based on the results of calculating a system of indicators that can confirm or refute the existence of risks in the work of clinics.
The monitoring will be conducted in medical facilities contracted under the packages “Medical Care for Acute Cerebral Stroke”, “Medical Care for Acute Myocardial Infarction”, “Medical Care during Childbirth”, and “Medical Care for Newborns in Complicated Neonatal Cases”.
In particular, the monitoring will be conducted in 16 clinics contracted for the acute cerebral stroke package, 11 clinics contracted for the acute myocardial infarction package, 28 medical institutions contracted for the maternity care package, and eight clinics contracted for the neonatal care package.
In addition, the NHSU informs that the list of medical institutions to be monitored will be supplemented by institutions that have a rehabilitation contract.
Data from all of the capital’s air quality monitoring points have been included in the “Kyiv Digital” application, said Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko.
“I will note that Kyiv continues to strengthen control over the state of atmospheric air. After all, military actions and shelling caused fires in the suburbs, from which the air condition on some days was unsatisfactory,” Klitschko stressed.
According to him, five stationary complexes of European standard are already working in the capital, carefully examining the quality of the air on about 10 indicators. It is also planned to add to them the measurement of the radiation background.
Kyiv plans to install three more stationary points of observation in Desniansky, Holosiyivsky and Sviatoshynsky districts in 2022.
There are also more than 40 indicative air monitoring stations in the capital, supplementing the data from the main stations.
The State Service for Food Safety and Consumer Protection has started to monitor prices daily for a number of socially important food products, medical products and fuel, according to the website of the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine on Wednesday.
“State supervision (control) during martial law in Ukraine will be carried out only to curb the rise in prices for socially significant products, guaranteeing their availability to the population and in the presence of a threat that has a significant negative impact on the rights, legitimate interests, life and health of a person,” the government said.
The list of food products for monitoring includes wheat flour, pasta, loaf, bread, buckwheat and oatmeal, pork, beef, poultry (chicken carcasses), milk, butter and sunflower oil, sour cream, chicken eggs, crystalline sugar, white cabbage, onions, beets, carrots, potatoes.
From non-food products, the list includes 96% ethanol, anti-inflammatory and antibacterial drugs, A-92 and A-95 gasoline, diesel fuel, liquefied gas for cars.
The Cabinet of Ministers in resolution No. 303 of March 13 stopped conducting state control and market supervision of prices for these goods, introduced in January of this year, however, the State Service for Food Safety and Consumer Protection took up daily monitoring of prices for them from March 22.
“According to the data provided by the monitoring, since March 14, logistics has been established in many enterprises in almost all regions of Ukraine, which improved the situation with the assortment of goods, and also made it possible to reduce prices for the grocery group of goods, bakery products, some dairy clear products, as well as fuel,” the government said in a statement.
In addition, the State Service for Food Safety and Consumer Protection called on businesses to prevent unreasonable price increases for goods with significant social significance for the population during martial law in Ukraine.
Between October 14, 2018 and October 14, 2019, representatives of nationalist and ultra-right organizations committed 137 acts of violence or attacks against property, journalists, politicians, and activists, said sociologist Oksana Dutchak, who helped with the monitoring project, named “Confrontations and Ultra-Right Violence.” sociologist. “From October 14, 2018 to October 14, 2019, 137 cases were recorded. Of these, 48 is a confrontation, 89 is ultra-right-wing violence directed against people or property,” she said during a press conference at the Interfax-Ukraine news agency on Monday.
The monitoring was carried out by the public organization Institute Republiсa with the support of the Rosa Luxemburg Foundation in Ukraine. It was based on materials on acts of violence or confrontation by ultra-right organizations and movements, information about which was published in the media and social networks.
“Over the indicated period, the largest number of acts of violence and confrontation were committed by representatives of the C14 and National Corps organizations. With the participation of C14, 40 cases were recorded, among which 25 violent attacks, 10 of them against people. The National Corps was involved in 30 episodes, 21 – of a violent nature, 15 of them against people,” said the organizer of the monitoring.
According to the monitoring results, the victims of violent actions by nationalists were most often feminist or LGBT activists, politicians and political parties, representatives of state or law enforcement agencies, as well as journalists.
Authors of the study said they think that Ukraine has a systemic problem with far-right violence, which is generated by inaction, and sometimes indulgence of the law enforcement system. They demand law-enforcement agencies conduct a thorough investigation of hate violence, as well as guarantee the rights of citizens to peaceful assembly, freedom of speech and security.
The European Trade Union Confederation is concerned about a lack of social dialogue in Ukraine and will send its monitoring mission to the country, Natalia Zemlianska, Chairman of the All-Ukrainian Trade Union of Production Workers and Entrepreneurs of Ukraine Natalia Zemlianska has said. “On December 17, the European Trade Union Confederation issued a statement expressing very strong concern over a lack of social dialogue in Ukraine,” Zemlianska said at a press conference at Interfax-Ukraine.
According to her, precisely because of the absence of such a dialogue, the parliament passed bills that discriminate against individual entrepreneurs, the Cabinet of Ministers is trying to agree on a new Labor Code, and people are forced to go outside in order to be heard.
“The European Trade Union Confederation is committed, firstly, to raise this issue at the level of the European Commission and the European Parliament, and secondly, it will now organize a mission to Ukraine to monitor the situation on the spot,” the expert stated.
