Because of the Ukraine war, people from Russia are only allowed to enter Estonia to a limited extent. In Germany, too, there are increasing calls for restricting Schengen visas.
In view of Estonia’s tightened visa regulations for Russian citizens, the debate about entry restrictions is gaining momentum. More and more countries are setting limits on the freedom of travel for Russians. A uniform EU solution is not yet in sight.
The mayor of the Ukrainian capital Kyiv, Vitali Klitschko, insists on entry bans for Russians. “Ukrainians are dying and Russians are enjoying life in Europe,” Klitschko told the “Bild” newspaper. “There must be sanctions, entry bans so that this is no longer possible.”
Countries are tightening travel regulations single-handedly
More and more countries are single-handedly restricting the issuing of Schengen visas to Russians. These include Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania and the Czech Republic. Finland wants to follow from September, Poland is considering a similar arrangement. Denmark is pushing for an EU solution and otherwise also wants to act itself. Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD) had recently rejected proposals for stricter visa rules.
FDP politician Marie-Agnes Strack-Zimmermann is against a general restriction on EU visas being issued to Russians. Each entry request must be checked “individually meticulously,” she told the newspapers of the Funke media group. “Looked at objectively, however, one should give the Russians who want to escape from Putin’s system a chance.” Strack-Zimmermann also said: “This isn’t just Putin’s war. No dictator in the world can wage a war like this if a large part of the population doesn’t stand behind him.”
Union for visa suspension
Several Union politicians called for a suspension of tourist visas. “Holiday visas for Russians must be stopped. Vacation destinations in Putin’s Russia can no longer be called Paris and Porto, but Pyongyang and Beijing,” said Andrea Lindholz (CSU), Vice President of the Union parliamentary group “Bild”. It is about sending clear signals to the Russian population. The European politician Dennis Radtke (CDU) told the newspaper that it was “intolerable that Russians are vacationing in Europe and celebrating their money as if nothing had happened”.
Estonia, meanwhile, spoke out in favor of another package of sanctions against Russia. “We must sharply raise the price of aggression for the aggressor before winter. The seven packages so far have not been enough to put pressure on Putin to end the war against Ukraine,” Foreign Minister Urmas Reinsalu told Estonian radio. From the Estonian point of view, a new package should therefore contain a complete energy embargo, further restrictions on certain groups of goods and people, and an entry ban for Russian citizens in the EU.
According to the authorities, around 2,500 Russian citizens crossed the border to neighboring Estonia every day – almost half of them with a tourist visa. These were issued to about the same extent by Estonia and other Schengen countries.
Source: Stern
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