The Czech Senate approved a law that effectively prohibits Russians from obtaining citizenship of this country

The Czech Senate has approved a law that effectively prohibits Russians from obtaining citizenship of this country, writes Radio Liberty. The law called Lex Ukraine mainly concerns the extension of temporary protection of Ukrainian refugees, the provisions on passports for Russians were introduced there as amendments.

In accordance with the new law, Radio Liberty emphasizes, applications for Czech citizenship will be considered only after the end of the Russian-Ukrainian war. The law also requires Russian citizens to renounce their Russian passport before receiving a Czech one. All applications already submitted for citizenship will be frozen.

Exceptions will be made for minors, asylum seekers and opponents of the Russian regime. It is unclear how Russians applying for citizenship will need to prove that they are dissidents.

The law also introduces criminal liability into Czech legislation for “unauthorized cooperation with a foreign state.” The opposition criticized this clause, pointing out that it could be used for political persecution.

After discussions in the Senate, the law was supported by only 21 of 73 senators - but since the dissenting senators did not make their own amendments, such a document is considered approved. For the law to finally come into force, the president must sign it, but this will likely be a formality, since he has previously said that he does not object to the adoption of the document.

• Human rights activists and Russians living in the Czech Republic pointed out that the ban on issuing Czech citizenship to citizens of a particular country could be considered discriminatory. Supporters of the amendments stated that it was impossible to talk about discrimination, since acquiring citizenship of another country is not a basic inalienable right.
• After the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the Czech Republic introduced some of the most stringent restrictive rules for Russians among all EU countries - it completely stopped issuing tourist visas and new residence permits, and also banned direct entry from outside the Schengen zone.