The German government has called on its European partners to introduce stricter restrictions on tourist travel by Russian citizens to the European Union, DPA reported, BTA reported.
“The number of visas issued – type C visas for Russian citizens who want to vacation in the European Union – is too high”, a spokesman for the German Foreign Ministry said yesterday in Berlin.
He recalled an agreement reached in 2022 within the EU for member states to work together to reduce the number of short-term visas of this type issued.
According to him, the agreement is being applied “with varying degrees of strictness by different countries”. The aim is to ensure that only people who do not pose a threat can enter the EU, the spokesman added.
The statement comes a day after the German government blamed Russia for the failed drone attack on Leipzig airport and announced retaliatory measures.
The foreign ministry spokesman also explained the decision to close the Russian Cultural Institute in Berlin, known as the Russian House.
“We have already served the notice of termination“, he said. According to him, the institute will cease its activities in the middle of next year.
However, its work opportunities will be limited even before that, as all employees seconded from Russia will be obliged to leave Germany, along with employees of the Russian Consulate General in Bonn.
The deputy spokesman for the German government, Steffen Meyer, said that Berlin was prepared for a possible reaction from Moscow to the measures announced the previous day.
“At the same time, we assume that the Kremlin understood yesterday's signal clearly and categorically. These hybrid attacks do not achieve their political goal. In the end, Russia only harms itself,“ said Meyer.