MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 18th August, 2022) The co-leader of the German opposition AfD party said it will make sure that Chancellor Olaf Scholz does not row back on his pledge to oppose a blanket ban on Russian tourists after several EU member states suggested stopping issuing Schengen visas to Russians.
"The continent of Europe must not be divided. We will put pressure on Chancellor Scholz to stick to his position this time and not give in to pressure from the Greens and FDP warmongers again," Tino Chrupalla told Sputnik.
Scholz said on Monday that Germany did not hold the people of Russia responsible for the military operation in Ukraine and would not make it more difficult for dissidents to leave the country. Chrupalla, who heads the AfD faction in the German Bundestag, said his party rejected travel bans.
Germany and France are some of the most prominent holdouts in the European Union. Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Finland and the Czech Republic have been calling for a Schengen-wide ban on Russian travelers after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy proposed the move. EU foreign ministers will discuss visas as part of a new sanctions package on August 31.
"Ukraine, together with the notorious war lobbyists in the West, will try to urge other states to take this step as well. Apparently, Germany and France are opposed to a Schengen-wide entry ban for Russian citizens... My hope rests on Hungary, which has acted in a sensible and sovereign way so far," Chrupalla said.
