People gather to celebrate the incorporation of regions of Ukraine to join Russia, in Red Square in Moscow, Russia, Friday, Sept. 30, 2022. The signing of the treaties making the four regions part of Russia follows the completion of the Kremlin-orchestrated “referendums.”( AP Photo/Dmitry Serebryakov)
In a joint statement issued Friday shortly after Russian President Vladimir Putin started the process of annexing four occupied Ukrainian regions, EU leaders said Moscow is undermining the “rules-based international order” and has violated Ukraine’s fundamental right to independence.
Russian President Vladimir Putin speaks during celebrations marking the incorporation of regions of Ukraine to join Russia, in Red Square in Moscow, Russia, Friday, Sept. 30, 2022. The signing of the treaties making the four regions part of Russia follows the completion of the Kremlin-orchestrated “referendums.” (Gavriil Grigorov, Sputnik, Kremlin Pool Photo via AP)
They added that they will never recognize the illegal referendums that Russia organized “as a pretext for this further violation of Ukraine’s independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity.”
People react during celebrations marking the incorporation of the Donetsk region into Russia in Donetsk, Ukraine, Friday, Sept. 30, 2022. The signing of the treaties making the four regions part of Russia follows the completion of the Kremlin-orchestrated “referendums.” (AP Photo)People gather to celebrate the incorporation of regions of Ukraine to join Russia, in Red Square in Moscow, Russia, Friday, Sept. 30, 2022. The signing of the treaties making the four regions part of Russia follows the completion of the Kremlin-orchestrated “referendums.” The sign on construction reads: “Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhzhia, Kherson, Russia.” ( AP Photo/Dmitry Serebryakov)
EU demands clampdown on issuing visas to Russian citizens
Russian cars and buses line up at the Vaalimaa border check point between Finland and Russia in Virolahti, Finland, Friday, Sept. 30, 2022. The Finnish-Russia border was closed Friday after the Nordic country announced it would ban Russians with tourist visas from entering, curtailing one of the last easily accessible routes to Europe for Russians trying to flee a military mobilization. Long queues were reported until midnight and among the last to enter Finland were two cyclists who arrived a little before 11 p.m., Finnish broadcaster YLE reported. (Sasu Makinen./Lehtikuva via AP)
“This is clearly an escalation and that means also an escalation of the security threat towards the European Union,” Migration Commissioner Ylva Johansson said.
She urged EU countries to enforce more stringent checks on Russian citizens and deny documents to anyone who might pose a threat.
Over 194,000 Russian citizens have fled to neighboring Georgia, Kazakhstan and Finland — often by car, bicycle or on foot — since Putin last week announced a partial mobilization of reservists to bolster his troops in Ukraine. In Russia, the vast majority of men under 65 are registered as reservists.
Finnish border guard speak with Russian men at the Vaalimaa border check point between Finland and Russia in Virolahti, Finland, Friday, Sept. 30, 2022. The Finnish-Russia border was closed Friday after the Nordic country announced it would ban Russians with tourist visas from entering, curtailing one of the last easily accessible routes to Europe for Russians trying to flee a military mobilization. Long queues were reported until midnight and among the last to enter Finland were two cyclists who arrived a little before 11 p.m., Finnish broadcaster YLE reported. (Sasu Makinen./Lehtikuva via AP)
Johansson said EU authorities must stop short-term visa holders from Russia from renewing them in Europe. “If a Russian person intends to stay longer than 90 days in the EU, he or she should not be issued a visa,” she told reporters.
Johansson also said Russians who have fled the country should not be allowed to apply for visas abroad.
“They have to do that from their home country, Russia,” she said, but underlined that they should be allowed in for humanitarian reasons, or other exceptional circumstances.
Finnish border guards on patrol, at the Vaalimaa border check point between Finland and Russia in Virolahti, Finland, Friday, Sept. 30, 2022. The Finnish-Russia border was closed Friday after the Nordic country announced it would ban Russians with tourist visas from entering, curtailing one of the last easily accessible routes to Europe for Russians trying to flee a military mobilization. Long queues were reported until midnight and among the last to enter Finland were two cyclists who arrived a little before 11 p.m., Finnish broadcaster YLE reported. (Sasu Makinen./Lehtikuva via AP)
Johansson also urged countries to reassess whether already valid visas should have been issued. She said that none of the measures the European Commission, the EU’s executive branch, is recommending would stop Russian citizens from applying for asylum in Europe.
“The right to have a short term visa into the EU is not a fundamental right. It’s privilege. The right to apply for asylum is a fundamental right,” Johansson said.
