Poland backs banning issuance of visas for all Russians
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Amid the continuous sanctions on Russia over its war in Ukraine, Poland supports abolishing the issuance of visas to Russians.
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Poland supports banning visas issuance to all Russians
The Polish government fully supports Estonian authorities' proposal for a European entry ban on Russian tourists and other types of travelers from Moscow as part of sanctions imposed on Russia due to the war in Ukraine.
Poland’s position has been revealed by Peter Muller, the country's press secretary who, according to an article published by RIA Novosti, said, “I will say in general, since I do not know the details of the proposals in question, that Poland is fully committed to far-reaching sanctions. So, we support this type of action, especially those initiated by our partners from Central and Eastern Europe."
However, sources at the EU Permanent Mission in Moscow claim that no official decision at the EU level to abolish the issuance of visas to Russians has been made yet.
Estonia looks to ban Russian citizens from Europe
Estonian Foreign Minister Urmas Reinsalu stated on Friday that as a general rule, Estonia will recommend restricting Russian individuals' access to Europe.
He also argued that Estonia was ought to follow Latvia's lead which required that all Russian nationals who sought entry sign a statement denouncing the Ukraine war; this rule would need to also be applied to those seeking citizenship through naturalization.
The presence of Russian citizens in Estonia and Europe allegedly raises concerns for Reinsalu. As such he has stated that Estonia will propose to restrict Russian citizens’ access to Europe as the main Europe-wide rule.
The top diplomat stated that there were three groups of Russian citizens crossing into Estonia despite the decrease in issuing new visas that have become mostly restricted to humanitarian cases. The first group, he argued, were those visiting sick relatives. “But their numbers have fallen drastically.”
Schengen visa denial to Russians to prompt extremely negative response
Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov touched on the issue of the Schengen region denying visas to Russians, underlining that this would prompt Moscow to take retaliatory measures.
"Of course, Russia will react extremely negatively to this. As far as we understand, so far, this decision has not found any, let's say, application ... Let's hope that it will not," he told reporters.
He also stressed that Moscow hoped the EU leadership uses reasoning and "sober thinking" regarding the issuing of Schengen visas to Russians.
The Schengen Area is an area comprising 26 European countries, namely Austria, Hungary, Norway, Belgium, Iceland, Poland, Czech Republic, Italy, Portugal, Denmark, Latvia, Slovakia, Estonia, Liechtenstein, Slovenia, Finland, Lithuania, Spain, France, Luxembourg, Sweden, Germany, Malta, Switzerland, Greece, and the Netherlands.
