French Foreign Minister Catherine Colonna said on Tuesday that she does not support the ban on the issuance of visas to ordinary Russian citizens
PARIS (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 30th August, 2022) French Foreign Minister Catherine Colonna said on Tuesday that she does not support the ban on the issuance of visas to ordinary Russian citizens.
Prior to the meeting of EU foreign ministers, Colonna said that it is important to separate Russian President Vladimir Putin and his entourage, those who are responsible for or support Russia's actions in Ukraine, and regular Russian citizens, including students and journalists.
"The former are responsible for the war, the latter are not," the minister told reporters.
France wants to continue to maintain ties with the Russian people, she noted. Additionally, Russian businessmen close to the president are already under sanctions and cannot come to Europe, Colonna added.
French government spokesman Olivier Veran said last week that Paris had no clear position on the proposal stop issuing Schengen visas to Russians and that this issue should be discussed at the European level.
The EU member states currently do not have a unified position on the visa ban for Russians. Earlier in the day, EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell urged the bloc to use a balanced approach when making this decision.
Moscow considers the proposal to ban Schengen visas for Russians as a manifestation of chauvinism and has pledged to take retaliatory measures if the decision goes through.
