Several European countries are advocating for a unified EU travel ban on Russian diplomats and their family members, who can travel visa-free within the Schengen Area.

Germany, the most influential member state, is being pressured into voting in favour of imposing an EU travel ban on Russian envoys, with this plan being initiated by Czechia during its EU presidency mandate in the second half of 2022, Schengen.News reports.

While many countries want to cut diplomatic ties with the Russian regime, preventing Russian envoys from enjoying the benefits of free movement, Germany is firm on maintaining diplomatic relations even amid tensions.

EU Countries Torn Over Potential Travel Ban on Russian Envoys

Germany refuses to vote in favour of the EU travel ban on Russian diplomats due to concerns over diplomatic retaliation from Moscow and the potential loss of communication channels with Russia.

In addition, diplomatic sources have revealed that Germany fears that such measures could trigger reprisals against 350 diplomats in Russia.

The plan to ban Russian diplomats in the EU is supported by eight other EU countries, including Baltic countries (Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia), the Netherlands and Poland.

We believe the EU should strictly follow the reciprocity principle and restrict the movement of members of Russian diplomatic missions and their family members to the territory of a state of their accreditation only. 

Russia Issued the Lowest Record of Diplomat Visas in 2023

Since February 2022, when the Russian war in Ukraine started, relations with the EU countries have deteriorated significantly. Fewer Russian nationals filed for Schengen visas, becoming the fifth nationality with most applications in 2023, while in the preceding year, Russians were the second.

In addition, the number of visas EU citizens obtained in Russia dropped, and the same occurred for diplomat visas.

According to data from the Russian Consular Department, Russian authorities issued 447 diplomatic visas to EU envoys in 2023. That is the lowest number of diplomatic visas issued in the last decade. The same data reveals that the Romanian and Austrian diplomats were top beneficiaries – being granted 104 visas in 2023.

As per regular citizens, in 2023, Russian authorities issued 58,888 to Germans, who obtained one-third of all visas Russia granted to EU citizens for the year. This result could be closely related to the fact that Germany has one of the largest communities of Russian speakers in the EU.