Russia and the EU are close to signing a deal to ease visa restrictions for travellers from both countries:
“A significant hole has been made in the Schengen wall,” Putin’s aide told reporters.
However, he noted that at this point, Russia and the EU countries were not ready for visa free travel between them “for both psychological and political reasons.”
It’s a step in the right direction, I suppose. But, when one considers that EU citizens can travel to most of the world visa-free, Russia is still going to be a mysterious, scary, difficult to get to place to the average European. Which means that the tourist dollars won’t start flowing just yet.
- What next?
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{ 4 comments }
Tim Newman 02.19.05 at 10:27 am
Oh please! Give me visa free travel to Russia!!!!
Michael Romm 03.17.05 at 11:21 am
Well. It is mostly in the hands of the EU now. Russia seems to be moving in the direction of Visa free travel, EU needs to start making some concessions - where is the goodwill?
Lyndon 03.17.05 at 2:22 pm
I think it’s really less a matter of goodwill than of the EU nations’ concern about the tide of illegal labor migrants from Russia which would likely follow if the need for a visa was removed.
Interestingly enough, when they announced the distribution of migration cards on my flight to Moscow from Brussels yesterday, the flight crew said that EU passport holders do not have to fill out migration cards. That was news to me, although I don’t know if it’s actually true.
Andy 03.17.05 at 2:56 pm
Maybe the flight crew got confused about which direction they were flying…
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