An EU plan to cut gas consumption by 15 percent to prepare for a possible gas shutdown by Russia this winter has been met with sharp skepticism from Spain and Portugal, two governments that are usually big supporters of the bloc, AP reported.

Madrid and Lisbon said Thursday they would not support the initiative announced Wednesday by European Commission head Ursula von der Leyen. The EU chief's proposal calls for voluntary cuts, but he also wants the right to make 15 percent savings mandatory for the bloc's 27 countries in the event of an EU-wide energy emergency due to the situation around Ukraine.

Spain and Portugal, however, said mandatory cuts make no sense. They noted that they use very little Russian gas compared to other EU countries, such as Germany and Italy, and that there are few energy links between them and the rest of Europe.

"We will defend European values, but we won't accept a sacrifice regarding an issue that we have not even been allowed to give our opinion on,” Spain's Ecological Transition Minister Teresa Ribera said.

 “No matter what happens, Spanish families won't suffer cuts to gas or to the electricity to their homes,” she said

For his part, Portugal's Environment and Energy Minister Joao Galamba said that the proposed measure is irrational and disproportionate.