The 27 EU member states, whose foreign ministers met on Tuesday and Wednesday in Prague (Czech Republic), reached an agreement to fully suspend the visa facilitation agreement that exists between the EU and Russia. But have not decided on a wider visa ban, as requested by some member states.
The head of European diplomacy, Josep Borrell, announced it on Wednesday at a press conference following the meeting. He said ministers meeting in Prague had agreed that relations with Moscow “cannot remain unchanged” and that the agreement, reached in 2007, must be “completely suspended”.
The agreement was already “partially suspended, for certain groups of people (politicians, etc.),” he explained. A total suspension of this facilitation agreement, dating from 2007, will “significantly reduce the number of visas granted by member states” to Russian citizens. “It will be longer and more difficult” to obtain a visa.
Making a concession to eastern EU members who had called for tougher measures, Borrell said countries bordering Russia “can take action at national level to restrict entry into the Union European”. However, he clarified that these measures should be in line with the rules of the Schengen area and underlined the importance that members of Russian civil society can continue to travel to the European Union.
Prior to the meeting, Poland and the three Baltic states (Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania) had said they were considering banning Russian travelers if the EU as a whole did not.
In a joint statement obtained by AFP, the four countries said suspending the deal was “a necessary first step”. “But we must drastically limit the number of visas issued, especially tourist visas, in order to reduce the flow of Russian citizens into the European Union and the Schengen area,” they added.
They stressed that this measure should include exceptions “for dissidents as well as for other humanitarian cases”. “Until such measures are in place at EU level, we (…) will consider introducing temporary visa bans or border crossing restrictions at national level for foreign nationals. Russian citizens with EU visas,” reads the statement, which was written in English.