EU Agrees Gradual Russian Oil Embargo, Gives Hungary Exemptions

High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Josep Borrell arrives for the second day of a European Union leaders summit as EU leaders attempt to agree on Russian oil sanctions in response to Russia's invasion of Ukraine, in Brussels, Belgium May 31, 2022. (Reuters)

European Union leaders have agreed an embargo on Russian crude oil imports that will take full effect by the end of the year, but Hungary and two other landlocked Central European states secured exemptions for the pipeline imports they rely on.

The ban, agreed overnight after weeks of wrangling, aims to halt 90% of Russia's crude imports into the 27-nation bloc by year-end, officials said.