EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said on Monday (April 12) that the Strait of Hormuz blockade was 'greatly damaging' and that the restoration of freedom of navigation was of "paramount" importance.

Her remarks came after U.S. President Donald Trump said the United States would begin a blockade of maritime traffic entering and exiting Iranian ports and coastal areas after a breakdown in talks.

She added that there could be no stability in the Middle East while Lebanon was still being bombarded.

Von der Leyen also said that European Union's member states must coordinate on energy prices amid a 22 billion euro ($25.70 billion) increase in fossil fuel bills since the start of the Iran war, adding that the Commission was looking into coordination of member states' gas storage filling and oil stock releases.

The EU Commission is planning to publish proposals for energy price measures on April 22, to be discussed by EU leaders at their informal summit next week.

Separately the EU's executive arm will present an electrification strategy before the summer, von der Leyen said as she stressed the need for structural measures to lower energy prices as well.

DESCRIPCIÓN DE IMÁGENES

BRUSSELS, BELGIUM (APRIL 13, 2026) (EUROPEAN UNION - Access all)

1. EU COMMISSION PRESIDENT URSULA VON DER LEYEN APPROACHING LECTERN

2. (SOUNDBITES) (English) EU COMMISSION PRESIDENT, URSULA VON DER LEYEN, SAYING:

"The ongoing closure of the Strait of Hormuz is greatly damaging, and the restoration of the freedom of navigation is of paramount importance for us. We are also worried that a continuous strike on Lebanon threatens to derail the entire process. We are mobilizing EU relief stocks to provide immediate aid to the Lebanese people, but no amount of aid can replace the safety of a permanent peace. A key lesson of the past weeks is that security is indivisible. You cannot have stability in the Middle East or the Gulf while Lebanon is in flames. So we call on all parties to respect the sovereignty of Lebanon, and to implement a complete cessation of hostilities."

3. WHITE FRAME

4. (SOUNDBITES) (English) EU COMMISSION PRESIDENT, URSULA VON DER LEYEN, SAYING:

"Since the beginning of the conflict, 44 days ago, our bill for fossil fuel imports has increased by over 22 billion euros. 44 days, 22 billion euros, not a single molecule of energy in addition. And this shows the enormous impact this crisis has on our economy. Even if the hostility ceased immediately, the disruption of energy supplies from the Gulf will persist for some time to come. And therefore, we discussed a series of measures that we will present to leaders at the next informal council that we have next week in Cyprus."

5. NEWS CONFERENCE ONGOING

6. JOURNALIST ASKING QUESTION

7. (SOUNDBITES) (English) EU COMMISSION PRESIDENT, URSULA VON DER LEYEN, SAYING:

"First and foremost, it is important that we have a robust coordination among the Member States because we've learned in any crisis, unity is our strength."

8. WHITE FRAME

9. (SOUNDBITES) (English) EU COMMISSION PRESIDENT, URSULA VON DER LEYEN, SAYING:

"We're also looking into EU-wide coordination of Member States' gas storage filling to avoid that many Member States go to the market at the same time, so they are competing against each other. And we will also coordinate oil stock releases to achieve the largest possible effect of these releases. And we will ensure that Member States' emergency measures will not impact the single market."

10. WHITE FRAME

11. (SOUNDBITES) (English) EU COMMISSION PRESIDENT, URSULA VON DER LEYEN, SAYING:

"We should reduce demand while fully respecting the free choice of consumers. So we are looking at energy efficiency levels such as renovation of buildings or the renewal of equipment in industrial operations. These are some measures, but there are also other measures that we will present or will be the core of the presentation of the communication next week on the table of the leaders."

12. NEWS CONFERENCE ONGOING

13. (SOUNDBITES) (English) EU COMMISSION PRESIDENT, URSULA VON DER LEYEN, SAYING:

"There's one thing that all these events make clear. We are paying a very high price for our over-dependency on fossil fuels. And the grim reality for our continent is fossil fuel energy will remain the most expensive option in the years to come."

14. JOURNALIST ASKING QUESTION

15. (SOUNDBITES) (English) EU COMMISSION PRESIDENT, URSULA VON DER LEYEN, SAYING:

"But at the moment, we're lagging behind with electrification, behind the United States, for example, behind China. So we will present our electrification strategy also before the summer. This will include an ambitious new target on electrification. Only what gets measured gets done. And to achieve this, we have to remove remaining regulatory obstacles, and we have to mobilize investment."

16. VON DER LEYEN LEAVING