Prime Minister of Estonia Kaia Kalas said that it is necessary to put an end to tourist trips by Russians to Europe. She wrote about it on her Twitter page.
“Stop issuing tourist visas to Russians. Visiting Europe is a privilege, not a human right. Air service from Russia has been suspended. This means that while Schengen countries issue visas, Russia’s neighbors take on the burden (the only access points are Finland, Estonia, and Latvia). Now is the time to put an end to tourism from Russia,” Kalas emphasizes.
Kyiv also responded to Estonia’s proposal. In particular, the chief of staff of the President of Ukraine Andriy Yermak agreed with the prime minister of the Baltic republic and stated that Russia needs to return to the USSR, which it misses so much.
“Estonian Prime Minister Kaia Kalas has called for an end to issuing tourist visas to Russians for trips to the EU. Because visiting Europe is a privilege, not a human right. Russia will be isolated. We, together with our allies, will do everything possible to ensure this. Did you want the Soviet Union? You will have the Soviet Union,” Yermak wrote in Telegram.
In an interview with The Washington Post, President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy called on the West to ban all Russian tourists from entering the country. In his opinion, the sanctions already imposed against Russia are “weak” compared to the closure of borders for Russian citizens for a year and a complete embargo on the purchase of Russian energy resources.
On August 5, the Association of Tour Operators of Russia announced that Bulgaria is suspending the issuance of tourist visas and visas for real estate owners to Russians for an indefinite period. The reason for this decision is the expulsion of 14 Bulgarian diplomats from Russia. However, on August 6, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Bulgaria stated that it did not stop issuing visas to Russians. The process of issuing visas has been delayed due to the reduction of technical staff, read more here.
Earlier, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Russia declared 14 employees of the Bulgarian Embassy in Moscow to be persons non grata. The ministry said that this was a response to a similar decision by Bulgaria regarding Russian diplomats.
On June 28, Bulgaria announced the expulsion of 70 diplomats and members of the technical staff of the Russian embassy. Russian authorities have said that the work of the embassy and consulate general is now “practically paralyzed”.
Earlier, DIP reported that “Finland wants to limit Russian tourists’ transit to Europe.”