It is important to find a solution to the issue of the Russian visa ban that takes everyone's concerns into account, but at the same time, the Russian people should not be held responsible for everything - emphasized German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock at a joint press conference held with Danish Foreign Minister Jeppe Kofod on Friday in Copenhagen.
According to Baerbock, it is important to keep in mind: in the current brutal war situation, we cannot give up forever on the 140 million people living in Russia".
The German foreign minister said that the issue will be examined from several points of view during the negotiations, because according to him, they cannot refuse entry permits to journalists or researchers who are otherwise at risk in Russia.
He reported that the number of Russian tourists in Germany had slightly decreased since the beginning of the war in Ukraine, but he also admitted that countries that are separated from Russia by only a border are in a completely different situation.
However, the head of Danish diplomacy took a more decisive position on the issue. Jeppe Kofod said at the press conference that he considers it a "very strong provocation" to see so many Russian tourists on the beaches of southern Europe, while the residents of Ukraine are fighting for their own freedom in their own country.
Confirming his German colleague, Kofod also called for a unified European solution, which he believes would definitely signal to Putin and Russia that there will be consequences if they illegally and mercilessly invade a European country".
He added: Europe could really have an impact on Putin together, with a combined force.
Bordering Russia, Latvia, Estonia and Lithuania, as well as the Czech Republic, have already introduced restrictions on visa applications for Russian tourists. Finland - whose border with Russia is about 1,340 kilometers long - will introduce restrictions on Russian arrivals in September, but Poland is not averse to this either.
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz has repeatedly stated in recent weeks that "this is Putin's war, not the Russian people's". The chancellor, as he said, is having a "very difficult time" with the idea of punishing Russian citizens with such a sanction. He stressed that "it shouldn't be generalized like that", but at the same time he admitted that he understands the decision of the states bordering Russia on the entry ban for Russians.
German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock will try to harmonize the German position with that of the other EU member states in Prague next week.
Source: MTI
Opening image: MTI/EPA/Filip Singer
