War

A thousand two hundred ninety -seventh day. In Europe, they said that Trump could not stop the war. Germany requires tightening the visa regime for Russians

Medusa from February 24, 2022 lives on the Russian-Ukrainian war on the air. In our daily materials, we publish your letters because we are sure: we must continue to talk about the war. What feelings do you experience because of the ongoing war? How does it affect you personally right now? How has your attitude to what is happening, towards Russia, Ukraine, to the world changed over these three years of the war? Look for a feedback form at the end of this article. The review of the previous day can be read here .

World

The European Union believes that Trump's peaceful efforts have not given a result, but now he is on the side of the EU

The Supreme EU representative for Foreign Affairs, the former Estonian Prime Minister Kai Kallas told reporters that the Russian-Ukrainian war would last a couple of years.

“I think it is realistic to assume that the war will last a couple of years. Unfortunately, the efforts to achieve the world, including the President of [US Donald] Trump, did not bring any results. Russia simply ignores these efforts, ”Kallas said on September 11 (quote for EFE ).

In her opinion, a more pessimistic scenario suggests that “Ukraine will be forced to give in” its territory, as President of Russia Vladimir Putin wants. “The way the events will develop largely depends on us, on how we react to this,” said the head of European diplomacy.

According to Politico, the coalition of European leaders convinced Donald Trump that Russia was not interested in stopping the war, and Moscow needs to be pressed so that it sat down at the negotiating table. Over the past week, according to the publication, US and EU diplomats held a series of negotiations to discuss “new financial restrictions and plans to stop the supply of Russian oil and gas”. The European Union sent a technical group to Washington to work out the sentences.

“Trump is finally on our side. Now the question is how to agree on two approaches, ”one of the EU diplomats told Politico on the basis of anonymity. Europeans participating in the negotiations believe that the most effective measures should be taken in partnership with the Americans.

But the positions of the United States and the European Union diverge. Washington believes that Putin can be forced to sit down at the negotiating table if duties that deplete the Russian military budget. At the same time, the EU insists that it is necessary to impose sanctions against enterprises and financial institutions that are associated with Moscow, writes Politico.

Donald Trump called on the European Union to introduce duties up to 100% of goods from India and China due to the fact that they buy oil from Russia, the Financial Times and AFP reported earlier, referring to sources. The same duties are ready to introduce the United States. However, for the European Union, Politico points out, this is economically and politically impossible. Some EU representatives have already opposed the idea of ​​duties.

The US President also urged Europe to stop buying Russian oil and gas. This, according to Politico, gives EU leaders a “lever of influence”, since Brussels will have a stronger position in relation to Hungary and Slovakia, which are friendly towards Russia and oppose the complete cessation of relations with Moscow.

The press secretary of the President of the Russian Federation Dmitry Peskov told reporters on September 12 that “the Russian side retains its readiness to follow the path of peaceful dialogue,” but there is no peace agreement, since “Europeans interfere.” Peskov added that representatives of Russia and Ukraine have so far taken a “pause” in negotiations.

Germany requires significantly reducing the issuance of Schengen visas to Russians as part of sanctions against Russia

The German government proposed establishing a more strict regime for the issuance of Schengen visas to citizens of the Russian Federation as part of the 19th package of sanctions against Russia, which the European Union has been introducing from 2022 due to the invasion of Ukraine, the DPA German agency said .

According to him, the German authorities demanded that the European Commission fully fulfill the recommendations of 2022, according to which the issuance of tourist visas to Russians should be significantly limited. Germany stands for a more strict visa regime to limit the entry into the EU of wealthy Russians, who are beneficial to the rule of Vladimir Putin.

According to the latest data from the European Union, the consulates of European countries in Russia in 2024 issued 542 thousand visas for a short -term stay in the EU countries or other states of the Schengen treaty, for example, in Switzerland. This is much less than in the dopandemic 2019, but about 20% more than in 2023.

More often than other visas to the Russians issued the southern EU countries. So, in 2024, Italy issued more than 152 thousand visas, France - 124 thousand, Spain - 111 thousand, Greece - 60 thousand. At the same time, Germany at the same time issued only 17 thousand visas for a short -term stay (for comparison: in 2019, the country issued almost 326 thousand visas).

The official representative of the German government, Stefan Cornelius, commenting on the publication of DPA, said Deutsche Welle that negotiations on the 19th package of sanctions against Russia are ongoing in the EU. “Now there are a lot of ideas: some are the right ones, some are not. I would wait for the completion of the process before I can confirm or refute it, ”he said.

Earlier this week, Julia Navalny called on the EU authorities not to introduce a complete ban on issuing tourist visas to the Russians. “The pressure on all citizens of the Russian Federation cannot affect the opinion of the leadership of Russia and its president. Also, this cannot be affected by a blow to that part of Russian society, which still maintains contact with Europe, ”Navalny said. She noted that many people from Putin’s entourage are still not under sanctions.

Navalny asked the EU authorities to “carefully weigh the extent to what extent that the measures that will be included in the 19th package of sanctions will encourage those who started the war and whose decisions and resources support it, to stop aggression.” “Putin is not Russia, but Russian citizens are not the perpetrators of the war,” she added.

War through the eyes of readers "Medusa"

How do we choose letters

Readers "Medusa" live in different countries and treat war differently. We publish your letters to see this event with your eyes. Our editors try to present all points of view, even if they do not coincide with the position of the editorial office. However, in accordance with the Medusa Code, we do not publish messages that contain the “language of hatred”, the murder of civilians is justified, and direct support for an aggressive war is expressed.

Nestor (St. Petersburg). Over the past three years, I had to survive different things. I met the war abroad on vacation, which suddenly moved into exile - more precisely, to her attempt. For a year and a half, I tried as best I could, but at one extreme moment I realized that I was no longer withdrawing and unlikely to take it out - therefore, not without fear, but returned to Russia. He began again from scratch (psychologically-with a large minus) in a terrible way changed-but still found a support and the opportunity (for now) to live modestly, but more or less in conscience. He retained ties with old and new friends in the emigrant environment and in Russia. But I clearly see that my life is a fragile relatively harmonious world in the midst of condensing darkness and barbarism, and shells are already falling nearby [...].

I want to express their pain and shame for citizens of Free Ukraine for the fact that the evil that enslaved Russia torments their beautiful country with the hands of my compatriots - and their admiration for the fact that they are opposed to all these three damn years. They confront, giving their lives and health. They confront where many others would have surrendered and obey. I believe that soon they will receive peace and independence, and that the terrible fee for them will not be in vain - and that in the future our two peoples will still be able to at least start talking and going to reconciliation again.

To everyone who is now with me in Russia and against the war and dictatorship, I want to say: we had a mission to maintain dignity, resist evil and remember that the movement towards freedom and justice is still possible. Yes, it means to roll a large and heavy stone uphill. But it is still better than giving this stone to crush us. And, besides us, there is no one to do this work anyway.

Now we do not have the opportunity for organized protest - this is a fact, now even for “pacific” on clothes may fly. But since the “pacific” is prohibited - even if there will be many different “pacifs”, noticeable to their own, a thousand different ways, separately, separately ways to give each other to understand - we are, we are against what is happening now, we believe in the best future. It can be an Azopov language, an anecdote, a painted strand of hair, an accidentally abandoned word, an inscription on the wall, a discreet detail of clothing, a breakdown of an anti -war song from the window of a passing car. Free conversation on a walk or on a campaign by a company of friends. Volunteering where you can meet your own. Joint reading of books. In the end (it is useful to already think about it) - agreements between friends and colleagues who can leave anyone if raids begin. Let Comrade Major run longer on the ice before catching someone-you look, and slipping, getting out of strength. This is our task for the next year or two-three-four. And then? Let us recall the Gandhi and Hindus in 1947, the “color” in America of the 1960s, the inconsistent Prague after the 1968, the movement of the Sapatists in Mexico, the GDR in 1989-perestroika, finally.

For those readers who are now abroad - I ask you: please support Medusa . For himself and for the guy who in Russia cannot do this without risk for himself. These letters alone are a thread that holds us together, and what can we say about the rest of the heroic work of the editorial office. Let's not give this all the abyss. Hold on, friends. God has no other hands except ours.

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