VISA BAN FOR PUTIN LOVERS
Stand with Ukraine Gothenburg supports the initiatives of Estonia, Finland, Latvia, Lithuania and Poland to stop issuing tourist visas to Russian nationals. Proposal to ban Schengen visas for Russian nationals is now submitted to the European Union for discussion. We call on all the EU states to take a decision on visa ban for citizens of Russia.
Russians traveling to the EU states is related with the security risk for all the Schengen member states. How can we guarantee that a Russian citizen who received a tourist visa is coming as a tourist and not as a spy?
Many of us remember the Scripal case, when two Russian intelligence agents entered UK on tourist visas to poison Skripal with military-grade nerve agent. The Kremlin claimed that these two men were tourists.
Russian GRU spy Sergey Cherkasov has tried to infiltrate International Criminal Court (ICC), under fake identity and applying for internship at the ICC in the Hague. The threat posed by this intelligence officer was deemed as potentially very high risk.
Russia also sends its GRU agents to ski resorts in French Alps. The Haute Savoie region in France has been named as a base camp for Russian spies specialized in targeted killings around Europe. 13 intelligence agents were identified in Haute Savoie in 2019, all of them members of GRU’s elite unit.
Ukraine military intelligence published the names and contact details of 620 alleged Russian intelligence agents in Europe. Its well-known that Russians spies can operate both under diplomatic cover and as tourists. After Russian invasion of Ukraine on February 24th, around 400 Russian intelligence officers have been expelled from the EU states. Since Russia’s ability to spy in Europe under diplomatic cover has been cut off, tourist visas have higher probability to be used for Russian agents to enter EU.
EU states bordering to Russia such as Finland, Estonia, Lithuania, Latvia and Poland carry the heaviest burden of Russians entering their territory. They are also exposed to a higher national security risk as a result. These are the states who were the first ones to initiate the visa ban for Russian nationals. Let us listen to the countries on the front line.
Russians have applied for 60 000 Finnish visas since the beginning of the war. In Finland 58% of the population want to ban tourist visas for Russians, according to a poll by the public television station Yle. Finland’s Prime minister Sanna Marin mentioned that while the war continues, Russians should not be allowed to “live normal life”.
Prime minister of Estonia Kaja Kallas calls to ban tourist visas for Russians, reminding all of us that “visiting Europe is a privilege, not a human right”. The number of Russian citizens passing through Estonia or coming to Estonia from Russia has increased massively and is not line with the imposed sanctions, says Foreign Minister of Estonia Urmas Reinsalu.
According to Czech Foreign Minister Jan Lipavsky, “the flat halting of Russian visas by all EU member states could be another very effective sanction”. Tourism minister of Bulgaria Ilin Dimitrov has reported that more than 50 000 Russians, mainly property owners, have visited the country by the end of June. “The obstacles and expenses do not stop them”, he added.
Half a year of war has proven that Russians are not concerned about mass murders, destroyed cities, nuclear terrorism, genocide in Bucha and Mariupol. “Only conversations about loss of visas were able to bring back awareness of war and responsibility. And this is the first step…to the russian revolt”, says Mykahylo Podolyak, adviser of the President of Ukraine.
One of the most important sanctions is to close the borders for Russian citizens. It is a way of bearing the collective responsibility of Russian aggression in Ukraine that is clearly and decisively supported by Russian society.
According to the latest data, around 77% of Russians support the invasion of Ukraine. Europe must face the uncomfortable truth that it is not only Putin’s war, but the war of Russian people. And supporting the military aggression against another sovereign and independent state in Europe will have the consequences.
Visa ban has an objective to influence the behavior of Russia and its society. It would also demonstrate Europe’s values and a clear position of no compromise with the aggressor.
We call on the European Union to stand wholeheartedly with the brave Ukrainian nation who are fighting for freedom and peace of Europe.
It is time to take the security risk seriously and moral responsibility fully and close the borders for Russians.
Stand with Ukraine Gothenburg
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