“Don’t let the Russians into Europe, for God’s sake!” – Latvia’s Prime Minister advised EU countries

“Don’t let the Russians into Europe, for God’s sake!” said Kulbergs in an interview with the Financial Times. According to him, Latvia faces hybrid threats daily and expects the highest influx of migrants attempting to cross its borders this year in the last five years. “Every country must take a tough stance on this issue. These are measures to prevent hybrid threats,” emphasized the Prime Minister. France, Italy, and Spain traditionally rank among the countries issuing the most Schengen visas to Russian citizens, the newspaper notes. According to the European Commission, they account for more than 70% of over 600,000 visas issued to Russians in 2025, FT highlights. These countries opposed the introduction of a ban on issuing visas to Russian tourists. In September 2022, the EU Council suspended the agreement on a simplified visa regime with Russia. At that time, the visa fee increased from €35 to €80, the standard processing time for applications extended from 10 to 15 days, and the requirements for documents and the issuance of multiple-entry visas were tightened. In November 2025, the European Commission limited the issuance of new multiple-entry Schengen visas to Russians. Exceptions were made, in particular, for certain categories of relatives of Russians residing in the EU and workers in the transport sector. The restrictions came into effect on November 8. In June 2026, the European Commission stated that it was not preparing a complete ban on tourist visas for Russians.