Denmark has voiced hopes for a comprehensive EU solution that will put an end to Russian tourists within the EU.
If Foreign Minister Jeppe Kofod were to have his way, Russian tourists would no longer have the opportunity to travel to Denmark or other EU countries because of Moscow's special operation to demilitarize and de-Nazify Ukraine, which the West has labeled an “invasion”.
“It is deeply provocative that Russian tourists can go on holiday in Europe at the same time that Ukrainian cities are bombed beyond recognition. And as Ukrainian men aged between 18 and 60 are not even allowed to leave the country, because they are conscripted to fight against the illegal Russian invasion. It is important that we send a clear signal to Russia that everything they are doing in Ukraine is completely crazy. And one of the tools that can be used are Russian tourist visas”, the Social Democrat minister told TV2.
Today and tomorrow he will be meeting his EU counterparts in the Czech Republic's capital Prague where further sanctions against Russia top the agenda.
“We will work hard for a common approach in the EU, because that will have the greatest effect. Just as with the seven sanctions packages we have made, it works strongest when we are all involved,” Kofod told TV2, adding that the visa ban will be his “priority”.
As was reported by UK newspaper The Financial Times, the EU plans to suspend an agreement with Russia from 2007, which made it easier for Russians to get a Schengen visa. After the start of the Ukraine campaign, the EU withheld visas from Russian politicians and officials as part of its sanctions campaign, but always stressed that ordinary people shall not be held responsible for the government's actions.
If it proves impossible to reach an agreement at an EU level on sanctions against Russian tourists, the Danish government will inspect its existing domestic options.
Earlier this month, Estonia closed its border to tens of thousands of Russians with previously issued visas, becoming the first country in the EU to do so. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky also urged the West earlier this month to impose a blanket travel ban on Russians. Latvia stopped issuing visas to Russian citizens, whereas Finland reduced the number of visas issued.
However, a blanket ban was opposed by a number of politicians, including German Chancellor Olaf Scholz. Other EU countries, such as Hungary and Greece, are also likely to resist an EU-wide ban, and Portugal has already opposed the step as “punishing the Russian people”.