Russian Nationals Crossed Lithuanian Border Over 130,000 Times Since Feb.24

The Minister pointed out that this is the number of border crossings and said that one person could have crossed the border more than once, suggesting that the number of Russian citizens who crossed the Lithuanian border could be lower, AtoZSerwisPlus.com reports.

“Over 130,000 Russian citizens with a Russian passport and a Schengen visa have crossed the Lithuanian border since the start of the war. This is the number of crossings because the number of people could be lower if a citizen had crossed the border more than once,” the statement of the Minister reads.

Considering such a high number of border crossings, Landsbergis, together with the Foreign Minister of Estonia, Latvia, and Poland, said after the two-day meeting held in Prague that they are considering introducing a visa ban on a national level or limiting the border crossings of Russian citizens who hold valid Schengen visas.

By introducing tougher restrictions, Lithuania, as well as the other Baltic States and Poland, want to create more security, as, according to them, the high number of border crossings from Russia could become a serious threat to public security.

“During the discussions, we managed to convince all EU countries that millions of Russian citizens with Schengen visas are a problem not only for the countries bordering Russia but also for the regional security of the EU. Together with Estonia, Latvia, and Poland, in the coming weeks, we will seek to find solutions that will significantly limit the flow of Russian tourists,” Landsbergis said after the two-day meeting.

Previously, atozserwisplus.com reported that almost one million Russians entered the EU through land border crossing points from February 24 until August 22.

According to the data provided by the European Border and Coast Guard Agency (Frontex), the majority of citizens of Russia who entered the EU during the period mentioned above held dual citizenship, residence permits, or valid Schengen visas.

Frontex showed that the highest number of legal entries of nationals of Russia in the EU were registered in the land border crossing points between Russia and Finland. From the beginning of the war until August 22, a total of 328,185 Russian nationals entered Finland through its land border crossing points.

Estonia, Poland, as well as Latvia also registered a high number of legal entries of Russian nationals.

Estonia registered a total of 281,957, Poland registered 49,123, and Latvia registered 54,618 legal entries of Russian nationals from February 24 until August 22.