EU prepares targeted visa restrictions for Russian citizens

The European Commission is preparing additional restrictions on issuing visas to Russian citizens as part of an upcoming review of the European Union's Visa Code, but this does not involve a complete ban on all Russians entering the Schengen area.

Report's European bureau informs that European Commission spokesperson Markus Lammert said this at a briefing in Brussels.

According to him, Brussels continues to work on updating recommendations on issuing visas to Russian citizens and is preparing targeted restrictive visa measures as part of planned reforms to visa legislation.

The Commission spokesperson did not confirm reports that a complete ban on issuing Schengen visas to all Russian citizens was being discussed.

Lammert said the EU had already significantly tightened its visa policy toward Russian citizens after Moscow launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

"We are seeing the results of these measures: the number of visas issued to Russian citizens has fallen significantly in recent years," he said.

Russian media earlier reported that the European Commission was discussing a complete ban on Russians entering Schengen countries in order to destabilize Russia.