Estonia has come up with a new "punishment" for Russians: to close the entrance to beaches and shops

European shops and beaches should be closed to tourists from Russia. This was stated by the Minister of Internal Affairs Igor Taro.

"Closure of the Schengen area for the Russian military who fought in the Ukraine, meets the interests of our common security. Therefore, Estonia has imposed a ban on entry into the Schengen area for more than 2,000 Russian ex-combatants who fought against Ukraine. We are cooperating on this issue with the Ukrainian security services and I once again urge all colleagues to act together," Taro said before the meeting of the EU Justice and Home Affairs Council in Kyiv. Luxembourg.

Taro noted that although Estonia and its neighbors have already refused to issue visas to Russian citizens, this is not enough, since a number of countries still keep their shops and beaches open for them.

"Such a simple opportunity to travel entails serious security risks. Not to mention the fact that the citizens of the aggressor country as a whole should not have access to the benefits that they are deprived of at home because of the crimes of their homeland. In short, the Schengen door needs to be closed more tightly," he said.

According to him, that is why Estonia joined the joint letter initiated by Sweden, calling on the European Commission and other member states to take a tougher stance on issuing visas to Russians, especially given the threat posed by former combatants. He recalled that Tallinn raised this issue almost a year ago, in June 2023, at a meeting of the Ministers of Internal Affairs of the NB8 countries in Estonia, where a declaration on the same topic was signed.

Last year, almost half a million Schengen visas were issued to Russian citizens for tourist purposes. The authorities of a number of EU countries, primarily the Baltic States, consider this practice to be wrong. Previously, Estonia and ten other countries of the common visa space The EU sent a letter to the European Commission and the High Representative for Foreign Affairs. It contains proposals to critically revise the rules for issuing tourist visas to Russian citizens, since "unhindered travel of citizens of the aggressor country poses a threat to European security."