Finns Want Govt to Stop Issuing Visas to Russians and to Cancel Already Issued Ones

Such a requirement has been made through a citizens’ initiative, which has received over 7,000 declarations of support until now, AtoZSerwisPlus.com reports.

“We demand that the Finnish parliament quickly take the necessary measures so that the Finnish government does not issue new visas to citizens of countries waging wars of aggression contrary to international law,” a part of the citizens’ initiative reads.

Finns have said that Finland should set an example for other member states of the European Union and terminate the issuance of new visas, as has already been done in Latvia, Estonia, and Lithuania, among others.

At the same time, they proposed that visas continue being issued only for humanitarian or other similar reasons.

Reasoning their request, Finss said that by not denying the right to Russians to obtain a visa, Finland would signal that it does not oppose the actions of a country waging an illegal war.

In addition, they emphasised that despite it being obvious and possible that the refusal of visas would not directly affect the activities of Russia directly, it is clear that the refusal of visas would cause dissatisfaction among its citizens.

Moreover, Finns pointed out that the enactment of the proposed legislation would also serve as a universal moral sign that Finland does not accept an illegal war of aggression and considers citizens of countries waging such a war as a security risk.

Apart from the above-mentioned, Finns suggested that the country maximises sanctions against the entire Russian population and stops allowing them to use Finland as a transit country.

“Sanctions must be maximised so that they affect not only the Russian elite but the entire Russian population. For this reason, Russian citizens should not be allowed to travel to Finland, nor should Finland be used as a transit country to the rest of Europe,” another part of the citizens’ initiative reads.

Finns highlighted that such action is necessary to prevent the free travel of Russian in the EU and supports the effects of the sanctions that have already been imposed against Russia.

Previously, AtoZSerwisPlus.com reported that traffic at the Russian border increased significantly. The Finnish Border Guard said that 596 people crossed the border in a week alone.