BRUSSELS (Reuters) – Belgium wants the European Union to stop issuing visas to all Russian citizens, including students, workers and tourists, asylum minister said on Thursday in response to Moscow’s attack on Ukraine.
“Russia’s reckless attack forces us to be careful with Russians wishing to come to Belgium,” junior minister for asylum and migration, Sammy Mahdi, said in a statement.
“At the moment, Russians are not welcome here, a general visa ban for Russians should not be a taboo,” he said, adding that should affect both short- and long-term stays.
Belgium’s Prime Minister Alexander de Croo has not made any specific comments on the matter so far. He is due to meet the EU’s 26 other national leaders later on Thursday to decide on more sanctions against Russia.
(Reporting by Marine Strauss @StraussMarine, Editing by Gabriela Baczynska)