Germany says proposal to ban issuing Schengen visas to Russians presented for talks in EU

The proposal to ban the issuance of Schengen visas to Russians has been introduced for discussion in European Union, German Cabinet spokesperson Steffen Hebestreit said. Hebestreit stated that Berlin will now discuss the proposal "between Cabinet members and within the EU," TASS reported. Steffen Hebestreit said that the discussions have not been completed yet and he cannot reveal "interim results." 

Steffen Hebestreit further stated that the German government has taken "note" of the proposal at the EU level. Notably, Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy urged all Western nations to ban entry for all Russians. In an interview with The Washington Post, Zelenskyy stressed that "the most important sanctions are to close the borders because the Russians are taking away someone else's land." He proposed that Russians should “live in isolation until they change their philosophy." Meanwhile, Estonia and Finland have urged the European countries to stop issuing tourist visas to Russian nationals. 

Estonia & Finland calls on EU to stop issuing tourist visas to Russians 

The leaders of Estonia and Finland said that the people of Russia should not be allowed to take vacations in Europe while Moscow continues its military offensive in Ukraine. Estonia's Prime Minister Kaja Kallas said that they should stop issuing tourist visas to Russians. Taking to her official Twitter handle, Kallas said, "Stop issuing tourist visas to Russians. Visiting Europe is a privilege, not a human right" and that it is "Time to end tourism from Russia now." Echoing similar remarks as Kallas, according to AP, Finnish Prime Minister Sanna Marin told Finnish broadcaster YLE that, "it is not right that while Russia is waging an aggressive, brutal war of aggression in Europe, Russians can live a normal life, travel in Europe, be tourists." 

Estonia and Finland are both members of the European Union and both nations have banned air travel from Russia after Moscow launched an offensive in Ukraine. However, Russians can travel to both nations by taking flights to other European nations. Meanwhile, Russian President Vladimir Putin's Press secretary Dmitry Peskov said that calls for travel bans have been made by countries that have been considered “hostile” by Russia, according to AP. He hoped that common sense will "manifest itself" and those who make statements like these will "come to their senses." 

(Inputs from AP)