Bulgaria, which is not part of the Schengen agreement, is trying to join the anti-Russian wing of the European Union. Although more than 60,000 Russians came to Bulgaria this summer, despite the “aviation sanctions”, the country consistently tries to make entry more difficult for Russians. Ilyin Dimitrov, the Minister of Tourism of Bulgaria, announced this.
He stated that until now Russian tourists enjoyed some concessions in visa fees, but this practice will be stopped. “There is no way to completely ban Russians from entering Bulgaria, but visa fees will be increased. This decision, which we consider not very appropriate, is a decision of the European Union (EU). We, as EU members, must adhere to it,” the Bulgarian minister said.
It should be noted that his statement was circulated by the Turkish mass media, satisfied with the competitor’s self-elimination. At the same time, according to Mr. Dimitrov, the Russians have about 100,000 properties on the Black Sea coast of the country, and they enter through Turkey, incurring serious costs to reach Bulgaria.
We will remind that in the EU, after an unscheduled meeting of foreign ministers held at the end of August, the cancellation of the agreement on the simplification of the visa regime between Russia and the European Union was announced. Yes, it will complicate and make it more expensive for Russian tourists to enter the EU countries, but the countries expectedly could not agree on a complete ban on issuing short-term visas for tourist trips.