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Informal EU Foreign Affairs Council to discuss idea of visa ban for Russians on Aug 31 – Czech FM
KYIV. Aug 12 (Interfax-Ukraine) – Foreign Minister of the Czech Republic presiding in the European Council, Jan Lipavsky, confirmed on Friday reports circulating in the European media this week that at the end of August the EU countries would discuss a visa ban for all Russians because of the full-scale war unleashed by the Russian Federation against Ukraine.
"A complete ban on visas for Russians by all EU member states could be another very effective sanction against Russia," Lipavsky was quoted as saying by BFMTV.
The channel notes that the Czech minister intends to probe the opinions of his European colleagues on this matter during an informal meeting of the EU Foreign Affairs Council on August 31 in Prague.
Lipavsky explained that during the period of the ongoing military aggression of the Russian Federation in Ukraine "there can be no talk of tourism, as in normal times, for Russian citizens."
However, according to BFMTV and a number of other European media, not all EU countries agree with this measure, and its approval requires the unanimity of all 27 EU member states.
According to the TV channel, the Czech minister has yet to convince the head of EU diplomacy, Josep Borrell, who chairs the councils of foreign and defense ministers of the EU countries, of the need for such a measure. Initiating sanctions is one of its prerogatives.
Earlier it was reported that Finland and Estonia are calling for restrictions on the entry of Russians into the EU, up to a ban on tourist visas.
The European Commission refrains from direct comments on these calls. EC spokesperson Anitta Hipper said at a briefing in Brussels last Thursday that the responsibility for issuing or not issuing visas rests with member states, who make decisions on an individual basis.
