Poland joined the Baltic states on Thursday in limiting the admission of Russian nationals on its territory, the government said, the latest move aiming to penalise Moscow for its invasion of Ukraine.
Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia this week agreed to limit the entry of Russian nationals into their countries from Russia and Belarus.
"Among the Russian citizens entering the EU/Schengen area, there are persons coming with the aim of undermining the security of our countries, insofar as three fourths of Russian citizens support Russia’s war of aggression in Ukraine. It takes tremendous resources for our border guard services to keep Europe safe and ensure the Russian citizens entering the Schengen area do not pose a threat to our common security and stability of our societies," the Polish government said in a statement, adding the new measures should enter into force by September 19.
"It is also unacceptable that citizens of the aggressor-state are able to freely travel in the EU, whilst at the same time people in Ukraine are being tortured and murdered. The majority of visas have been issued to Russian citizens before Russia’s full-scale aggression in Ukraine, under different geopolitical conditions and considerations. Travel to the European Union is a privilege, not a human right," we read further.
Russia has described its actions in Ukraine as a "special military operation" and denied accusations that its forces have perpetrated rights abuses during the conflict.
"The measures are adopted on the basis of the common rationale of the protection of public order and internal security, as well as the overall security of our common Schengen area," the Polish government said.
"We emphasise that this is not an outright entry ban and commonly agreed legitimate exceptions will remain in force for dissidents, humanitarian cases, family members, holders of residence permits, for the facilitation of freight and transportation services, diplomatic missions, Kaliningrad facilitated transit of persons, etc. We fully uphold the need to continue to support opponents of the Putin regime and provide them with opportunities to leave Russia," the statement added.
Źródło: TVN24 News in English, Reuters
Źródło zdjęcia głównego: Shutterstock