The number of Russian citizens entering the EU has skyrocketed following partial mobilization ordered by the Kremlin. Illegal border crossing could increase if Russia decides to close the border to potential recruits, EU border guard Frontex said Tuesday.
“Over the past week, almost 66,000 Russian citizens entered the EU, more than 30% more than the previous week. Most of them arrived in Finland and Estonia,†Frontex said in a statement, referring to the week of September 19-25.
Most Russians crossing the EU border have residence permits, visas or dual citizenship, the report said, adding that in the last four days alone, 30,000 Russian citizens have arrived in Finland.
“According to Frontex, the number of illegal border crossings may increase if the Russian Federation decides to close the border to potential recruits,†the agency said in a statement.
Recall that on Monday, the EU countries began discussing policies regarding Russians fleeing the draft but have not yet reached a consensus.
At the end of August, the EU disagreed on a ban on issuing visas to Russian tourists, which was demanded by the Baltic countries and some other countries. Instead, the bloc decided to make obtaining a visa for Russian tourists a more expensive and lengthy process.
On September 19, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania and Poland began to impose their own restrictions on the entry of Russian tourists. Finland plans to introduce similar restrictions.
