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The European Union failed to agree on a ban on the entry of Russians into the EU. However, the countries decided to suspend the simplified visa regime for Russian citizens.
Hungarian Foreign Minister Péter Szijjarto announced the relevant information on 31 August. This happened after the EU foreign ministers gathered in Prague for a two-day ministerial meeting.
The EU failed to approve visa restrictions for Russians
The European Union will terminate the visa facilitation agreement with Russia, Szijjarto said.
According to the minister , only a qualified majority of Member States is needed. From the speeches of the ministers on August 31, it is clear that it exists.
At the same time, EU countries will not impose a complete ban on issuing visas to Russians, since there is no consensus on this issue.
The Hungarian minister himself noted that Hungary, like some other countries, opposes the ban on issuing visas to Russian citizens.
It should be remembered that the simplified visa regime allowed Russians to obtain Schengen visas faster and cheaper – for 35 euros instead of 80. It also provided for the widespread issuance of multiple-entry visas.
What preceded this
- Even before the meeting EU foreign ministers Financial Times reported that the EU would terminate the visa facilitation agreement with Russia.
- Moreover, an unnamed EU official added at the time that the EU could resort to even more serious visa measures before the end of 2022 in Russia.
- It is known that Estonia, the Czech Republic, Lithuania and Latvia will not issue visas to Russians. Some restrictions on the issuance of certain types of visas were introduced by Denmark, the Netherlands, Belgium, Japan.
- France and Germany opposed the ban on issuing visas to Russians who are opponents of the Putin regime.
