Lithuanian Foreign Minister Gabrielus Landsbergis, in his column for Pollitico, called on all European Union countries to cancel long-term multiple-entry Schengen visas issued to citizens of Russia and Belarus.
"Together we must find a common and effective solution to make the visa ban as effective as possible. And it must include a clear no to Russian and Belarusian tourists, effective immediately; the revocation of already issued long-term multiple-entry visas at least until the end of the war" and a permanent reception of those seeking asylum is not a European vacation," Landsbergis wrote.
The head of the country's Foreign Ministry noted that due to limited air travel, Russians use visas from other EU countries to enter Europe by land through the Baltic states. "Thus, EU members who continue to issue tourist visas to Russians not only ignore all the atrocities committed against Ukrainians, but also actually 'invite' Russian tourists to the Baltic states," Landsbergis said.
At the same time, even in the event of the adoption of a ban on the issuance of new permits, many Russians have already received a large number of multiple-entry visas with a term of three years or more, noted the head of the Lithuanian Foreign Ministry. Against this background, he called for their cancellation.