The Foreign Minister of Finland, Elina Valtonen, has submitted five requests to the European Union that would drastically limit the ability of Russian citizens to enter and travel within the EU, in a letter dated October 12 and consulted by Kyiv Independent.
“The Kremlin must understand that perpetuating aggression will lead to even greater isolation. I ask you to treat these proposals with utmost urgency,” wrote Valtonen. The EU foreign ministers are meeting in Luxembourg.
The first request is “the cessation of issuing Schengen visas for Russian citizens making non-essential trips, including tourist ones”. Finland has been applying national restrictions since 2022, she pointed out, but several countries, especially France, Spain, and Italy, have opposed attempts to ban the issuance of tourist visas for Russians.
Valtonen writes that he would support a German proposal regarding “visas with limited territorial validity”, but only as a temporary measure.
Secondly, Valtonen calls for the introduction, as a sanctioning measure, of a mandatory visa ban for individuals in the close circle of Russian President Vladimir Putin, as well as for all persons and entities sanctioned by the EU.
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