Are fuel cuts back on the table?

Summary

Brussels Playbook Podcast — "Are fuel cuts back on the table?"

Date: March 31, 2026
Host: Zoya Sheftalovich (POLITICO’s Chief EU Correspondent)
Guest: Ian Wishart (Senior EU Politics Editor)
Duration: ~14 minutes

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Episode Overview

In this brisk, reporting-driven episode, Zoya Sheftalovich and Ian Wishart dissect Brussels’ urgent warnings on a looming energy crisis — and the European Commission’s advice that citizens should curb their travel and cut fuel use. The team also reports on the symbolic visit of EU foreign ministers to Ukraine to mark the Bucha massacre anniversary, and unpicks an internal spat over expensive new infrastructure at the Committee of the Regions. Lively, conversational, and deeply plugged into the latest EU politics, the episode ties together major geopolitical upheavals and the immediate moves in Brussels and Europe’s capitals.

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1. Brussels Prepares for a New Energy Crisis

[00:37 – 05:53]

Key Discussion Points

• Possible Fuel Cuts & Travel Curbs

  • Zoya opens by underscoring the EU’s call for citizens to potentially reduce travel and fuel consumption to prevent running down limited energy reserves.

    “Brussels is basically telling Europeans that they may need to travel less to save money on fuel…” (Zoya, 00:37)

• Background: Why Now?

  • This new crisis is triggered by escalating conflict in Iran, with additional risks tied to Houthi activity threatening the key Red Sea and Strait of Hormuz oil chokepoints.
  • Europe's last major energy emergency (2022-23) stemmed from the war in Ukraine, but the current threat is considered to be even more severe.

    “…the Houthis in Yemen…funded by Iran…[are] taking out potentially the Red Sea crossing point. So that could make the crisis even worse than the choke point in the Strait of Hormuz.” (Zoya, 02:12)

• POLITICO Scoop: Commissioner’s Confidential Letter

  • Ian highlights a leaked letter from EU Energy Commissioner Dan Jorgensen, obtained by POLITICO, advising national ministers to “reduce demand” — primarily by targeting transport sectors.
  • The Commission is acting within limits, as it cannot fully manage energy supply or pricing, but aims to coordinate a continent-wide response.

    “This is a letter, by the way, that’s not be made public, has it? We obtained this letter.” (Ian, 02:45) “...there needs to be more action on demand.” (Zoya, 02:56)

• National vs EU Competence

  • Debate centers on whether such actions are for national governments or an appropriate step for the Commission, recalling COVID-era exceptions where the EU acted beyond its normal remit.

    “Is this an EU competence, do you think? Is this not for national governments…?” (Ian, 03:19) “I think what this gives us is an indication that this is probably…a pretty significant crisis and the commission takes over.” (Zoya, 03:38)

  • The measures are voluntary — options, not mandates — but the severity of language signals serious concern.

Notable Quote:

“The message is pretty clear — look, if this conflict drags on, then Europe is going to need to adapt and adjust and we’d best start doing that now.” (Zoya, 05:31)

Memorable Moment

• Ian compares the current crisis prospect to the 1973 oil shock, noting experts now say it could be worse.

  “…experts are saying, actually this time could be worse than that.” (Ian, 05:06)

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2. EU Ministers Mark Bucha Massacre in Ukraine

[05:54 – 10:17]

Key Discussion Points

• Foreign Visits & Commemoration

  • Around a dozen EU foreign ministers, plus top diplomats and selected sectoral ministers, are in Ukraine to honor the anniversary of the Bucha massacre, marked by harrowing atrocities during the war’s opening phase.

    “...the fourth anniversary of the Bucha massacre, which was one of the most horrific events of the war in the early days…” (Ian, 06:23)

  • The Bucha massacre saw about 450 civilians killed amid evidence of mass executions, rape, and other crimes.

• Legal Action & Quest for Accountability

  • The ICC and Ukrainian prosecutors opened war crimes investigations, though the ICC’s reach is limited as Russia isn’t a member.

    “...the Criminal Court cannot investigate the crime of aggression because Russia is not a member party to the court.” (Zoya, 07:20)

  • Emphasis on the special tribunal for the crime of aggression against Ukraine — with the EU as a founding member and initial funding (€10 million) pledged.
  • Tribunal aims at holding top-level political figures, e.g., Vladimir Putin, accountable, modeled after the Nuremberg Trials.

    “...the difference…is that here they focus on individuals at the political level who launched the war…” (Zoya, 08:00)

Notable Quote:

“It’s a horrible thing to say, but obviously the war in Ukraine is still going on while the world’s attentions have moved away to the Middle East. And, you know, this is just a reminder of that.” (Ian, 08:47)

Memorable Moment

• Discussion of Zelenskyy’s diplomatic efforts to use Ukraine’s experience in maritime blockades as leverage with Middle Eastern powers.

  “Zelensky was saying…he has offered to his Gulf counterparts…to help them learn from Ukraine’s experience unblocking the Black Sea…” (Zoya, 09:08)

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3. The Committee of the Regions’ Expensive Makeover

[10:20 – 12:37]

Key Discussion Points

• What is the Committee of the Regions?

  • An EU body representing local and regional authorities, crucial for administering and influencing cohesive funding across the bloc.

    “Basically, it’s an EU body that represents local and regional authorities. So it’s got mayors, deputy mayors, local politicians.” (Zoya, 10:53)

• Controversial Infrastructure Plans

  • The Committee plans major renovations — €50 million in total — including a new 450-seat plenary (“conference hub”) at €3.6 million.
  • These plans surfaced via POLITICO’s reporting, with staff and unions upset at not being consulted, and some officials labeling the scheme “megalomaniac.”

    “...a lot of the staff and unions are up in arms because they weren’t aware of this plan before now.” (Ian, 11:37) “...it still hasn’t really been explained or explored with the relevant parties, as far as we know…” (Zoya, 11:52)

  • Raises broader questions of EU spending and transparency.

Fun Aside

• Ian plugs an upcoming Committee event on the coexistence of “large carnivores” and humans — Wolves being a recurring EU topic.

  “Event at the Committee of the regions on April 14th…continuing the discussion on the coexistence of large carnivores with humans.” (Ian, 12:20)

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4. Brief Lighter Segment: Maltese Freedom Day

[12:51 – End]

• Celebrating Malta’s Freedom Day
  • Marks the 1979 end of British military presence.
  • Hosts joke about famous Maltese people and traditional pastries (“pastizzi”).

    “Pastizzis are so freaking good. I know that we always come back to food on this podcast, but genuinely, all I can think of now is pastizzi.” (Zoya, 13:30)

• Wrap with playful banter and listener engagement.

  “Who’s the most powerful Maltese person in town?” (Zoya, 13:18)

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Notable Quotes with Timestamps

• On the Energy Crisis:

  • “Brussels is basically telling Europeans that they may need to travel less to save money on fuel and to essentially not run down the supplies of energy that Europe has.”
    — Zoya, [00:37]

• On EU Competence:

  • “Is this an EU competence, do you think?...It just strikes me as an interesting thing that the commissioners think that they should step into national politics.”
    — Ian, [03:19]

• Historical Echoes:

  • “...experts are saying, actually this time could be worse than [the 1970s oil shock].”
    — Ian, [05:06]

• On Bucha Massacre:

  • “Once those troops were expelled by Ukrainians were truly, I mean, astonishing, astonishing things. So there were mass executions of civilians. Around about 450 civilians were killed…”
    — Zoya, [06:38]

• On Tribunal for Aggression:

  • “...here they focus on individuals at the political level who launched the war on Ukraine.”
    — Zoya, [08:00]

• On the Committee of the Regions Project:

  • “I think one of the officials at the union described it as megalomaniac, these plans.”
    — Ian, [11:37]

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Important Segment Timestamps

• 00:37 – 05:53: Fuel curbs and the EU’s energy strategy
• 05:54 – 10:17: Foreign ministers in Ukraine, Bucha commemoration, and war crimes accountability
• 10:20 – 12:37: Controversy over Committee of the Regions’ new building plans
• 12:51 – 14:00: Maltese Freedom Day and lighter close

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Tone and Style

Conversational but reporting-driven, with real-time analysis balanced by wry humor and personality. Zoya and Ian’s banter keeps even the densest topics lively, while the POLITICO team’s scoops ensure listeners get an inside track on Brussels politics.

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In Summary

This episode captures the EU’s rapid preparations for a possible continent-wide fuel crunch, underscores ongoing efforts to ensure accountability for war crimes in Ukraine amid shifting global focus, and puts a spotlight on EU institutional spending behind closed doors. Whether you’re an energy policymaker, foreign affairs follower, or just here for the pastry talk, this episode packs insight with personality.

Transcript

[Emily Schulteis]

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[Zoya Shevdolovic]

Good morning. It's Tuesday, March 31st, and this is the Brussels Playbook podcast. The vibe in Brussels today, well, it's electric as the EU starts preparing people for a new energy crisis that could be around the corner. And also on the pod. Foreign ministers are meeting in Ukraine to mark the anniversary of the Bucha massacre. And the Committee of the Regions is thinking big, very big, with plans for 3.6 million euro to be spent on new digs. I'm Zoya Shevdolovic and with me today is our senior EU politics editor, Ian Wishart. Hey, Ian.

[Ian Wishart]

Hello, Zoya.

[Zoya Shevdolovic]

Ian, what's your favorite Brad Pitt movie?

[Ian Wishart]

What? Was he in Top Gun or anything like that?

[Zoya Shevdolovic]

That's not Brad Pitt. Cruise.

[Ian Wishart]

I don't think I've ever seen a Brad Pitt movie.

[Zoya Shevdolovic]

Jesus Christ, Ian, you need an education. Mine is Burn After Reading, which is a Coen Brothers flick, but you probably

[Ian Wishart]

should say why you're asking me that question.

[Zoya Shevdolovic]

Well. Well, Brad Pitt is in Brussels right now filming a film.

[Ian Wishart]

Exciting.

[Zoya Shevdolovic]

Yeah, he shut down the park, San Quentin there all of the day yesterday, so no one could go running through it. And the museums were closed. Devastating.

[Ian Wishart]

Well, we look forward to watching that, don't we?

[Zoya Shevdolovic]

Can't wait. Let's get on with the news. Let's start with something that's probably going to hit people pretty directly at their hip pockets. Brussels is basically telling Europeans that they may need to travel less to save money on fuel and to essentially not run down the supplies of energy that Europe has.

[Ian Wishart]

This is quite dramatic, isn't it, for the European Commission to be. Well, it's sort of via governments, I think, telling governments that they should consider asking their citizens to. To travel less and to use less petrol.

[Zoya Shevdolovic]

Yeah, definitely. We're seeing shades of previous energy crises. The last one was the one that we had in 2022, 23 as a result of the war on Ukraine. And basically this is all about the fallout in the war in Iran. So the fear is that we're going to head into a pretty prolonged disruption of energy supplies. And that's being driven as well now by the fact that the Houthis in Yemen, who are funded by Iran, who've said that they're going to be entering the group chat and taking out potentially the Red Sea crossing point. So that could make the crisis even worse than the choke point in the Strait of Hormuz.

[Ian Wishart]

So what we're talking about today is this letter from Commissioner Dan Jorgensen, who you interviewed for this podcast last.

[Zoya Shevdolovic]

He's a friend of the pod.

[Ian Wishart]

Yeah, that's what we say. And he's saying that if countries need to act, they should focus on cutting demand in transport. This is a letter, by the way, that's not be made public, has it? We obtained this letter.

[Zoya Shevdolovic]

That's right. It's basically this letter that our colleague has got his hands on, which is being sent to EU ministers saying that they need to figure out ways to reduce the demand. Because on the supply side, the commission is doing what it can, but there is a limit to what it can do because of the limitations in terms of these choke points. On the pricing side, they're doing what they can to lower prices so that it doesn't hit households quite so much. But there needs to be more action on demand.

[Ian Wishart]

Is this an EU competence, do you think? Is this not for national governments to tell their citizens, you know, work remotely, make speed limits lower? Why is the Commission getting involved in this? Obviously they've got to say. They can say, based on the research, the way the oil price is going. But it just strikes me as an interesting thing that the commissioners think that they should step into national politics.

[Zoya Shevdolovic]

Yeah, I think what this gives us is an indication that this is probably. Well, it's gearing up to be a pretty significant crisis and the commission takes over. So there are a lot of things that are national competences that the commission steps in when it becomes that kind of larger issue. And we saw that with COVID as an example, when the commission stepped in and was like, okay, yes, health is not an EU competence. Yes, it is a national competence, but we're going to step in here and buy a mass amount.

[Ian Wishart]

I guess it's when all member states are affected by the same thing and affected pretty equally that the commission can step in. We saw it with COVID and also with the start of the Ukraine crisis when energy prices went so high.

[Zoya Shevdolovic]

Yeah, but it's Obviously, still all voluntary. No one is making any orders. The Commission isn't sort of saying this is how much energy you may use now cut. They're just saying these are some options that you should look at to help bring down that demand. And part of it is also because some countries, so Poland as an example, have been cutting their excises, their fuel excises, and that can also increase demand because it effectively reduces prices. So, you know, people can afford to pay.

[Ian Wishart]

I can't imagine the Commission ever putting out requests like that to its member states.

[Zoya Shevdolovic]

Well, I mean, we'll see what happens over the coming days, because this crisis is one that is looking pretty worrying at that EU level. And we're starting to hear whispers of things that are being discussed which may look quite severe by the time this crisis kind of comes along.

[Ian Wishart]

I think what brings it home to me, I mean, neither you or me remember the 1970 oil shock.

[Zoya Shevdolovic]

Before my time.

[Ian Wishart]

Yeah. And that was when, I mean, I think we both remember seeing, you know, or can see now, sort of the nostalgic film of people, like, filling their cars up with petrol and not being able to get to the petrol station. And at that point, the price per barrel quadrupled because of the oil embargo in 1973. And I find it scary that experts are saying, actually this time could be worse than that.

[Zoya Shevdolovic]

Yeah. And this is something that Brussels is alive to. I think those comparisons are being made in the Berlamont as well as in national capitals around Europe. And basically everyone's trying to get ahead of the crisis and do what they can to reduce the impact when or if it hits. And the message is pretty clear, look, if this conflict drags on, then Europe is going to need to adapt and adjust and we'd best start doing that now.

[Ian Wishart]

Yeah. Rather than panicking.

[Zoya Shevdolovic]

Exactly. Right. Ian, over to Ukraine. Now. We've got an informal Foreign Affairs Council that's taking place there today, and the expectation is that around a dozen foreign ministers from EU countries around the block are going to be on the ground and they're going to be joined by the EU's top diplomat, Kayakallas, their Ukrainian counterpart, Andrei Sibicha. And there's going to be also, actually, a smattering of education and transport ministers as well.

[Ian Wishart]

And the reason they're there today is because it's the, what, the fourth anniversary of the Bucha massacre, which was one of the most horrific events of the war in the early days, actually.

[Zoya Shevdolovic]

That's right. This is the Bucha massacre, where the Russian forces Occupied the town of Bucha, just on the outskirts of Kyiv, for about a month back. When the war first kicked off in 2022, it was horrific. So the things that we saw once those troops were expelled by Ukrainians were truly, I mean, astonishing, astonishing things. So there were mass executions of civilians. Around about 450 civilians were killed there. And there were those satellite images that we saw of civilians being tied up and dead on the ground. There's evidence of rape and other atrocities. So it really is a horrific, horrific situation that happened there. And so now this is the fourth anniversary commemoration, and they commemorated every year on the 31st of March.

[Ian Wishart]

So a big group of foreign ministers from the member states are going there.

[Zoya Shevdolovic]

That's right, yep. And the icc, which is the International Criminal Court, and Ukrainian prosecutors have launched war crimes investigations into what happened at Bucha and elsewhere. But the Criminal Court cannot investigate the crime of aggression because Russia is not a member party to the court.

[Ian Wishart]

Right, but there's something else. There's a special tribunal for the crime of aggression against Ukraine, isn't there? And that's going to be a focus of the meeting today.

[Zoya Shevdolovic]

That's right. So this tribunal, the framework for it, has been already kind of decided. That was decided last year. And now what's holding things up is that the Ukrainians need more countries to get on board. So we've heard from our reporting that around about 10 countries are on board, but the Ukrainians want more. We don't know which those 10 countries are yet, by the way, Ian. And the thing that I should mention here is that the difference between this and other war crimes investigations is that here they focus on individuals at the political level who launched the war on Ukraine.

[Ian Wishart]

Like the Nuremberg trails, then.

[Zoya Shevdolovic]

Yeah, exactly. Right. So this is modeled on that. We're talking about holding Vladimir Putin accountable.

[Ian Wishart]

And this is a thing that the European Commission made an announcement on a few days ago when they said that the EU itself would be one of the founding members of this tribunal. Is that right?

[Zoya Shevdolovic]

That's right. And they've actually said that they're putting some money behind it. So 10 million euros is going to be put into the kind of fund to help this get off the ground. But again, the Ukrainians need a fair bit of money because this is a pretty significant, significant investigation, and it requires resources.

[Ian Wishart]

It's a horrible thing to say, but obviously the war in Ukraine is still going on while the world's attentions have moved away to the Middle East. And, you know, this is just a reminder of that. And I suppose that's why they have to keep marking these events, why it's important for the EU to send the ministers there and have meetings there. Keep talking to Zelensky. This is still going on despite everybody looking at Iran and the Middle East.

[Zoya Shevdolovic]

Yeah. And you know, it's interesting because Zelenskyy himself kind of acknowledged this and has been acknowledging the fact that attention to the Middle east and he's trying to use some of that momentum from the war in Iran to also help his cause with the Middle east countries, because traditionally those Gulf countries have been seen as more aligned with Russia, with Moscow. What he's saying now is, hey, Gulf countries, we can help you protect yourselves with drones and we can help you unlock the Strait of Hormuz. So one of our colleagues, Veronica Melchizedoreva, she was on this group chat with Zelensky and some other reporters that basically showed the extent to which this is the case. Zelensky was saying in that group chat that he has offered to his Gulf counterparts and to others to help them learn from Ukraine's experience unblocking the Black Sea when, you know, early in the war when that was blocked and Ukraine couldn't sell its grain, and there were big problems on that. So he said, you can use our expertise, we can help you, and we can unblock the Strait of Hormuz. So it's quite a clever tactic by Zelensky.

[Ian Wishart]

And obviously the link between these two wars is the oil price, which brings us back to what we were talking about at the start of the podcast. So you know.

[Zoya Shevdolovic]

Exactly. And Russia, because of course Russia is helping Iran.

[Ian Wishart]

Yeah. Okay, Zoya, should we move to our last story today? It's about this new plenary hall in the Committee of the Regions. What do you know about the Committee of the Regions?

[Zoya Shevdolovic]

One of my favorite committees. My top five at least.

[Ian Wishart]

What your other four.

[Zoya Shevdolovic]

I love all committees. I won't name my darlings, but I do, I do genuinely like the Committee of the Regions. It's full of mayors. I love a mayor.

[Ian Wishart]

So shall we tell people what the Committee of the Regions is, first of all?

[Zoya Shevdolovic]

Basically, it's an EU body that represents local and regional authorities. So it's got mayors, deputy mayors, local politicians.

[Ian Wishart]

Very important when it comes to talking about the long term budget of the eu. Because a lot of the money goes via the regions.

[Zoya Shevdolovic]

That's right. It's what we call cohesion funding, because they're all going to bridges and roads and whatever in various regions, regional areas. So that's the body. And basically it's got kind of six plenaries a year that they hold. So that's six big meetings where everyone comes together in a year. And they've got this big plan to spend around about 50 million euros on renovations. And as part of that plan, there's this idea of building a 450 seat plenary hall which they're officially calling a conference hub, which is going to cost 3.6 million euros of taxpayer money.

[Ian Wishart]

And I think according to the story that we've got out today from Gerardo Fortuna, he's saying that a lot of the staff and unions are up in arms because they weren't aware of this plan before now. I think one of the officials at the union described it as megalomaniac, these plans.

[Zoya Shevdolovic]

Yeah, well, I think the fact that they haven't been informed is what he was referring to. But the thing is that it's still not public. So Gerardo has got his hot little hands on this information and it's out there now because of our reporting. But it still hasn't really been explained or explored with the relevant parties, as far as we know, unless they've done it in the last 24 hours. But the reason that it's important is basically it does kind of lead to questions being raised about whether this is a good use of taxpayer money or not.

[Ian Wishart]

Event at the Committee of the regions on April 14th. Sawyer. Continuing the discussion on the coexistence of large carnivores with humans.

[Zoya Shevdolovic]

That sounds like a really good event. Which kinds of carnivores are we talking?

[Ian Wishart]

Wolves. Wolves, I think.

[Zoya Shevdolovic]

Oh, Wolfgate reopened again.

[Ian Wishart]

Yeah, let's not get into that.

[Zoya Shevdolovic]

Well, anyway, today the Committee of the region's leadership is going to decide on whether to go ahead with these renovation plans. So watch this space. Before we go, Ian, guess what?

[Ian Wishart]

What?

[Zoya Shevdolovic]

It's Freedom Day in Malta.

[Ian Wishart]

Comes around so quickly.

[Zoya Shevdolovic]

Doesn't really does. And I just blew out the candles last year. It's the day that marks the end of British military presence on the island in 1979.

[Ian Wishart]

You'd think so, too.

[Zoya Shevdolovic]

Congratulations to Roberta Mazzola, Glenn McAuliffe, all the top malts in town.

[Ian Wishart]

Do you think of any more?

[Zoya Shevdolovic]

I'm out. What about you?

[Ian Wishart]

No.

[Zoya Shevdolovic]

Well, folks, if you've got a favorite Maltese person we haven't named in our previous two, let us know.

[Ian Wishart]

Yeah.

[Zoya Shevdolovic]

Who's the most powerful Maltese person in town?

[Ian Wishart]

Is it Roberto Marsola?

[Zoya Shevdolovic]

Well, or maybe there's a secret Maltese person pulling all the strings. Maybe it's you, Ian, eating pastitsi up there on your mountain. Pastizzis are so freaking good. I know that we always come back to food on this podcast, but genuinely, all I can think of now is pastizzi. I really just.

[Ian Wishart]

What is that?

[Zoya Shevdolovic]

It's the Maltese pastry that on the one hand is God's gift to delicious pastry, but on the other hand, one of the key reasons why Malta has one of the highest obesity rates in Europe.

[Ian Wishart]

Do you ever get confused between Malta and Cyprus?

[Zoya Shevdolovic]

Not even one time. Well, that's it from us today, folks. Leave us a message. Our number is in the show notes. Leave us a review. Tell us what you think. What's your favorite? Pastizzi.

[Ian Wishart]

Bye.

[Zoya Shevdolovic]

Bye. It's like the national food of Malta. It's genuinely delicious. You can have a pea. One pea.

[Ian Wishart]

Oh, peas.

[Zoya Shevdolovic]

That's the best one. Give peas a chance. Dionis.

[Emily Schulteis]

Hey. This is Emily Schulteis. I'm the senior editorial director of POLITICO's live journalism events. On April 9th and 10th, we're heading to Barcelona for our first ever live event in Spain. At the European Pulse Forum, we'll dig into the most pressing issues facing Europe, from defense to energy to affordability to tech and AI. And we'll have some of the biggest political names in Spain joining us on stage, including Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez. Register to join us in person or tune into the live stream to watch the discussions on Politico EU.

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