UN Opposes Estonia’s Decision to Ban Visas for Russians

The spokesperson of the UN Secretary-General said that by imposing such measures, Estonia is discriminating against citizens of Russia, AtoZSerwisPlus.com reports.

Commenting on the decision of Estonia, the spokesperson stated that each country has the right to implement its own policies on visas and, at the same time, highlighted that the UN opposed discrimination.

The Estonian authorities announced last week that from August 18, the country would no longer issue visas for citizens of Russia. In addition, the same said that Russians who already hold a Schengen visa issued by Estonia would not be permitted entry.

“The possibility for Russian citizens to visit Estonia en masse or through Estonia to Europe is not in line with the purpose of the sanctions we have imposed. When imposing sanctions, Estonia wanted that the aggressor country would not have the opportunity to continue normal international life at the level of its citizens,” the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Estonia said.

Prior to this decision, the Estonian Prime Minister, Kaja Kallas, said that it was time to end tourism from Russia. Kallas called on all the other Schengen member states to stop issuing visas to Russians as, according to her, visiting Europe is not a human right but a privilege.

In addition, Kallas emphasised that while Schengen countries issue visas, Finland, Estonia, and Latvia continue to carry the burden as they are the sole access points for Russia.

Other countries are yet to make a decision on the matter. A proposal to ban visas for Russians was submitted to the European Union for discussion last week.

Announcing the news, the spokesperson of the German Cabinet said that the proposal would be discussed between the members of the Cabinet and within the EU.

However, the proposal on the Schengen visa ban was not supported by the German Chancellor, Olaf Scholz. The Chancellor said that stopping the issuance of visas for citizens of Russia is a hard-to-imagine idea. In addition, he highlighted that sanctions should not be imposed against innocent citizens.

The Chancellor suggested that the sanctions should focus on targeting Putting and other individuals responsible for the war. Additionally, he claimed that extending the measures to include innocent citizens would reduce the effectiveness of sanctions that have been imposed until now and of those that might be imposed in the future.