The EU foreign ministers will meet in Prague on Tuesday and Wednesday. One point of contention is on the agenda: tourist visas for Russian citizens. The Balts are for a ban, Germany against. A first compromise is probably on the table.
What is it about?
At the end of the summer vacation period, the EU foreign ministers are dealing with the question of whether Russian citizens should be banned from vacationing in the EU. The debate was initiated in the past few weeks by Estonia, Latvia and Finland. They all border directly on Russia. The sanctions prohibit Russian planes from landing at EU airports. Nevertheless, since the beginning of the war on February 24, around one million Russians have entered the EU legally, the Estonian radio station ERR reported, citing the EU border protection agency Frontex. About 60 percent of them did so overland to Estonia and Finland.
Which regulations apply so far?
It’s actually quite simple. If you want to holiday on the Côte d’Azur and don’t have an EU passport, you need a visa for the Schengen area. This is valid for a maximum of 90 days and must be applied for in the holiday country. For Russian citizens, the procedure was simplified with an agreement in 2007.
But the first Eastern European countries are already shaking it up. Poland and Lithuania have signaled that they want to suspend the regulation without an EU compromise. Latvia now only issues Schengen visas to Russian citizens who want to attend a relative’s funeral. As of Thursday, a regulation is to apply in Finland that will reduce the number of approved visa applications from Russia by 90 percent.
According to Finnish Foreign Minister Pekka Haavisto, a mere visa ban based on nationality is not possible. Therefore, the opening hours of the Finnish representations in Russia, which are responsible for applying for tourist visas, are to be shortened. Those who apply for an entry permit for family reasons, work or study should also be given preferential treatment.
What do the numbers say?
According to its own information, the EU Commission issued a total of around 2.4 million Schengen visas last year. The largest share, more than 500,000 pieces, was allocated to Russian application locations, only three percent of the applications were rejected.
From March to July of this year, a total of 14,237 German Schengen visas were issued to Russian citizens, the “Süddeutsche Zeitung” reported. Compared to the previous year, the number has doubled, compared to the pre-Corona year 2019 it is 90 percent less.
The “Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung” reported that so far 73 humanitarian visas have been issued in Germany for opposition Russians. In addition, 241 commitments were made for admission in this country. According to the Ministry of the Interior, many members of the opposition were waiting to see whether the situation in Russia would continue to deteriorate. According to the “FAZ” report, the small number can be explained by the fact that humanitarian visas are often refused in practice.
Why do some want to ban tourist visas?
One of the biggest advocates is Estonian Prime Minister Kaja Kallas. She described the visa ban as the Kremlin’s “Achilles’ heel” and has already been personally attacked by ex-President Dmitry Medvedev for the demand. In her view, the ban would primarily affect the upper class from Moscow or St. Petersburg. She hopes that this group will influence the Kremlin.
In an interview with the Italian “La Repubblica”, Kallas called for the price for Russian aggression to be increased – with the visa ban. “All these Russian tourists are coming in through our land borders,” Kallas said. “We cannot screen everyone and we bear the burden of the Schengen area.” It’s not okay for her. “We should close this loophole of travel sanctions.”
Is that the only reason given by the Balts?
no Perhaps the proponents’ strongest argument is the moral perspective. “It is not right that Russian tourists can just enjoy their holidays in the EU while Russia is waging a war against another independent country, killing and torturing Ukrainians there,” Kallas said. “The citizens of a country are also responsible for their actions.”
Kremlin opponents could also use these visas to flee.
Critics often point this out. In order to keep this possibility, the Estonians, for example, do not advocate a total ban. Kallas argued that visas for humanitarian reasons, family members, asylum seekers or dissidents should continue to exist. The Baltic country is already using these exceptions, and the Finnish regulation works in a similar way.
What other arguments speak against it?
Critics also point out that the visa ban would fit into Russian propaganda. The Kremlin is spreading the claim that the West hates everything Russian. An entry ban could fuel the propaganda. Russian opposition figures are also warning of a general travel ban. The supporter of Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny, Leonid Volkov, wrote that the assumption “If Russians can no longer go to Europe, they will overthrow Putin” is incorrect and “utter stupidity”. He compares this to the situation in North Korea, Cuba or Iran.
What is wrong with the visa ban?
The EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell doubted on the Austrian television station ORF that there would be unanimity within the EU for a decision on this issue. In Berlin, for example, there is still resistance. Chancellor Olaf Scholz rejects the visa ban.
He has been saying this publicly for several weeks, most recently at a public dialogue in Magdeburg last Thursday. He can understand the demand, but: “It’s Putin’s war. It’s not ‘the’ Russians – you should never make this generalization,” added Scholz. The Chancellor is not alone in this; France, Austria and Portugal are also reluctant.
The big EU countries are against it, does that mean the visa ban is off the table?
no Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock gave the first signs of a compromise last Friday. The Chancellery and the Foreign Office wanted to “bring together legitimate concerns and concerns.” It is important to the Greens politician “that in this situation of brutal war of aggression we do not give up 140 million people in Russia forever and, above all, in German one would say: take them into custody”.
This is also signaled by a report by the “Financial Times” on Sunday. Accordingly, the EU plans to suspend the 2007 visa agreement with Russia. For Russian citizens, it would then be more complicated, more expensive and more time-consuming to obtain a Schengen visa. This does not correspond to a complete visa ban, but it is a first step.
