Czechia will ban entry for Russians with tourist visas from October 25

Starting October 25, Russian citizens will not be allowed to enter Czechia on Schengen tourist visas issued by any EU country, Jan Lipavsky, Czech Minister of Foreign Affairs told the publication Novinky.

“We [the government] are introducing measures relating to citizens of the Russian Federation who have received short-term Schengen visas for purposes of tourism, culture, and sport. They will be banned from entering Czechia. This primarily concerns Russian citizens who arrive through the Prague airport,” he said. “We cannot turn a blind eye to a situation where the Russian regime bombs civilian targets.”

Vit Rakusan, Czechia’s minister of internal affairs confirmed that all members of the government agreed to the decision. “This is a measure which expresses the clear position of the Czech Republic,” he said.

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• In September, Poland, Latvia, Lithuania, and Estonia banned entry for Russians traveling on tourist visas. The restrictions apply only to the EU’s external border, so these countries can still be entered from neighboring EU countries. Finland later joined the countries imposing restrictions on Russian travelers.