'Russians being denied Schengen visas can't be ruled out; it would be very bad': Peskov

During a press briefing on July 26, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov stated that the prospect of Russians being denied access to the Schengen visa cannot be ruled out. He further added that Moscow will take retaliatory steps if Russians are refused access to a Schengen visa. However, he expressed hope that it would not come to that.

According to Interfax, Peskov told reporters, "We cannot rule out some actions of such an emotional nature that will not fit into the understanding of sound judgment. In this regard, it is really impossible to exclude such a danger, it would be very bad and, naturally, would entail retaliatory variations on the part of Moscow."

He went on to say, "Still, I would like to hope for the best, at least for a small part of preserving the sober thinking of our opponents. Let's still not forget that in situations of special significance, such as the story of the Kaliningrad transit, some sprouts of common sense break through the veil of such an emotional unconscious state."

According to him, Western nations compete in pursuing various anti-Russian and unfriendly steps against Russia. He remarked that they are nearing the end of their inventory of measures capable of putting pressure on Russia. He said, "We see that they are running out of arsenal of some measures that, as they see it, are capable of putting pressure on us and forcing us to change our position, and more and more irrational, unreasonable, difficult to explain decisions are being made."

Estonia plans to request EU to suspend providing Schengen visas to Russians

According to Estonian Foreign Minister Urmas Reinsalu, his ministry is preparing a request to the European Union to suspend providing Schengen visas to Russians. According to him, the topic of visas for Russian people was debated in the European Union in March, but there were limits in Russia at the time due to the coronavirus, and the visits were not as widespread as they are now.

The Estonian Ministry of Foreign Affairs intends to develop suggestions for the EU in the next weeks, according to several media reports. Following Russia's invasion of Ukraine, some EU nations, notably the Czech Republic, Latvia, Lithuania, and Estonia, halted giving visas to Russians, unless in exceptional circumstances.