An EU official said Austria was undertaking "diplomatic outreach" to potentially interested countries. Austria, Germany, Luxembourg, Portugal and Denmark jointly called for nuclear to be excluded from the rules last November when the EU was still drafting them. Ireland and Spain had also warned Brussels against labelling investments in gas as "green". Gewessler said labelling gas, a fossil fuel, as a green energy investment had damaged the credibility of the EU rules. Environmental campaigners including Greenpeace launched separate legal challenges last month against the rules, which they said violated the EU's own climate laws.

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