The EU Foreign Affairs Ministers, meeting informally in Prague on Wednesday 31 August, will have a difficult discussion on the possible suspension of Schengen visas for Russian citizens, requested in particular by Finland, Poland and the Baltic States, but opposed by other countries such as Germany, France and Luxembourg.
While the Ukrainian Foreign Minister, Dmytro Kuleba, called on Twitter on 30 August for the EU27 to suspend the granting of visas for all Russian citizens (diplomats, those close to the regime and business leaders have already been deprived of visa facilitation in February as part of sanctions against Russia, editor’s note), the Luxembourg Minister, Jean Asselborn, on his part, criticised on Tuesday evening, on arriving at the meeting, a “collective” measure that would send the wrong signal to Russian citizens who do not support Vladimir Putin’s war and cannot demonstrate democratically in the country either.
This is the argument also defended by Paris and Berlin who, in a joint document seen by EUROPE, oppose a visa ban for all Russian citizens and express their wish to keep legal entry channels for artists, scientists, students or people opposed to Vladimir Putin’s regime who should be able to continue coming to the EU.
Believing that the EU must win the battle of “hearts and minds” among the Russian population, the two capitals therefore consider it crucial to maintain a legal visa framework for these people, as their arrival in the EU has a “transformative power” for Russian society, and warn against a drastic reduction of visas.
The Latvian and Finnish ministers hoped on Tuesday that the EU27 would arrive at a “unity” and a common position on the subject, while several countries, including the Baltic states, but also Slovakia, have already reduced the issuance of visas to Russian citizens since the beginning of the war.
“I hope that, as far as visas are concerned, the big countries will understand that there must be more restrictions on the travel of Russian citizens, because there is no need to hide behind the idea of a people’s diplomacy” reacted the Latvian Artis Pabriks.
The Baltic countries and Finland, which are pushing for a suspension of the 2007 visa facilitation agreement with Russia, have however indicated that they will still issue visas, including humanitarian ones, for people wishing to flee Putin’s regime and war.
No formal decision is expected on Wednesday, but the countries behind the discussion on visas for Russian citizens hope to leave Prague with a political green light from their partners. (Original version in French by Solenn Paulic with Camille Cerise Gessant)