Several European countries plan to close entry to the Schengen area to Russians who participated in the war in Ukraine.
The Estonian news agency ERR reported that the plans were announced by the ministers of internal security of the Baltic states, the Nordic countries and Poland at a meeting in Tallinn, which was also attended by Magnus Brunner, the European Commissioner for Home Affairs and Migration, and a representative of the border agency Frontex.
Estonian Interior Minister Igor Taro stated that it is necessary to restrict the freedom of travel of "hundreds of thousands of Russian citizens who fought against an independent European state."
"We must take a very clear position that these people cannot travel freely within the Schengen area - we will not give them residence permits, we will not issue visas, because all these people who killed and destroyed there pose a very serious threat to the security of all of us," he said.
At the same time, it is emphasized that the ban on entry to the Schengen area for participants in Russian military aggression should remain in force even after the end of active military actions.
Juras Barauskas (ELTA)
