Polish Deputy Foreign Minister Piotr Wawrzyk outlined a set of measures that Warsaw believes will prevent Russians from obtaining visas. He noted that Poland supports suspending the visa facilitation agreement for Russian citizens, but he emphasized that not every EU member state is ready to adopt a blanket ban on visas for Russians.
According to Wawrzyk, the major EU powers including Germany, France and the Netherlands oppose a unified visa ban. He added that Poland is pursuing a new approach because overcoming the resistance of these countries to suspend the visa facilitation agreement is not feasible. The Deputy Foreign Minister said that Warsaw has been negotiating this issue with several European partners for weeks. He pointed out that Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, the Czech Republic and Slovakia share Poland’s stance, and that decisions are expected in the coming weeks.
For months Poland has stopped issuing tourist visas to Russians. At present, only Russian diplomats, truck drivers and other Russian citizens who must cross the border for work, as well as family members of Polish or other EU citizens, and those holding a Polish Card, which confirms Polish ancestry, can obtain visas. Polish government spokesman Piotr Muller stated on July 28 that Poland favors ending the issuance of Schengen visas to Russians and reiterated Poland’s commitment to broad sanctions. He said the country supports such measures and that this is an important part of their policy.
The Czech Republic, Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania have already banned issuing visas to Russians. Denmark and the Netherlands do not issue short stay visas to Russians. Finland is also considering similar restrictions, while Latvia has urged the EU to halt visa issuance for Russian and Belarusian citizens.
From August 18, Estonia will no longer permit Russians who hold a Schengen visa issued by Estonia to travel on that document.
Review of visas and residence permits
On August 14, Latvian President Egils Levits called for a review of visas and residence permits previously granted to Russians. He suggested permanent residents of Latvia should not be granted a residence permit if they decide to acquire Russian citizenship. Earlier, the Latvian embassy in Moscow suspended accepting visa applications from Russians indefinitely. These developments drew strong reactions from political figures in Russia and Latvia alike.
Leonid Slutsky, chairman of the State Duma Committee on International Relations, condemned the Latvian president’s proposal as a movement toward Nazism and a violation of rights and freedoms on a national scale. He argued that such an overhaul undermines Ukraine gradually reconfiguring its own legal framework and accused Levits of reacting to political pressures rather than upholding traditional law. His remarks underscore the sharp tensions around national sovereignty, minority rights and citizenship in the region.
No unity in visa policy in the EU
On August 10, Germany opened a discussion on a draft EU resolution that would ban the issuance of Schengen visas to Russians as part of a new package of sanctions, though the talks have not concluded. The proposal would apply to tourists, students and civil society actors, with the European Commission maintaining that member states must still provide documents for family members of EU residents, humanitarian workers, journalists and other residents in need. The German Foreign Ministry noted that the plan would be debated at an EU foreign ministers meeting in Prague at the end of August, while a German diplomatic spokesperson described the idea as speculative. The German chancellor remarked that such a step might be necessary, though opinions vary among member states. A representative of the European Commission stated that EU visa law does not currently authorize stopping the issuance of short-stay visas to Russian citizens. In humanitarian situations, exceptions exist for families, journalists and dissidents, among others, and the EU has already partially suspended the visa facilitation agreement with Russia, with the impact largely felt by businessmen, diplomats and officials rather than ordinary citizens. EU nations retain the authority to evaluate visa issuance in specific circumstances on their own, the commission noted.
The United States expressed opposition to a ban on issuing visas to Russians, with Deputy Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Vedant Patel saying that any restrictions should avoid harming the Russian people and should not have broad negative effects. The Kremlin signaled caution, hoping the EU will weigh its options carefully and prepared to respond strongly if Schengen access is denied to Russians. Russian officials also indicated that any move to restrict Schengen visas would prompt a firm and negative reaction from Moscow, reflecting the high stakes involved in the visa policy debate across Europe.