Czech Republic prohibits the entry of Russian citizens with visas from the Schengen area

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PRAGUE, Oct. 12 (DPA/EP) –

The Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Czech Republic, Jan Lipavsky, announced this Wednesday that as of October 25 they will prohibit the entry of Russian citizens with a visa from the Schengen area, either for tourist reasons, or to attend sporting and cultural events. .

The restriction, which will be in force regardless of the European Union member state issuing the visa, is part of Prague’s policy response to the Russian invasion of Ukraine, which began in late February.

Previously, the Czech government has already suspended the issuance of most of this type of travel permit for Russian citizens. “One cannot close one’s eyes to the fact that Russia is ruthlessly shelling civilian targets in Ukraine,” Lipavsky argued.

With this measure, the Czech Republic joins other countries that have decided to toughen their legislation in retaliation for Russian aggression on Ukraine, such as Poland or the Baltic countries, who have put more pressure on Brussels to adopt measures of this type.

Until now, around 200 Russian citizens with Schengen visas had been flying to the Czech Republic on a daily basis.