Artem Studennikov, Director of the First European Department at Russia’s Foreign Ministry, has accused European countries of self-harm through restrictions on Russian tourist flows and the operations of European travel agencies in Russia.
In an interview, Studennikov stated: “If Europeans choose to keep shooting themselves in the foot by restricting tourist flows from Russia and prohibiting European travel agencies from working in the Russian direction, this is their choice. We leave on their conscience the attempts to build a new ‘iron curtain’ in Europe.”
The remarks follow reports that the EU is discussing a ban on issuing tourist visas to all Russians. Last year, more than 600,000 Russian citizens received travel documents for Schengen countries. On August 20, Igor Popov, Russia’s Consul General in Geneva, reported that Swiss authorities began denying entry to Russian citizens for medical treatment without providing official explanations.
