EU Interferes In Russian Affairs By Separating Citizens Into Visa Categories - Moscow

The decision of the European Union to categorize Russian citizens as "useful" and "useless," and label some as "unsafe" while issuing visas is an overt interference in Russia's foreign affairs, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said on Tuesday.

Last week, EU Home Affairs Commissioner Ylva Johansson said that the suspension of the visa facilitation agreement between Russia and the EU meant that Russian citizens would "no longer enjoy privileged access to the EU." On September 9, the European Commission issued guidelines on the procedure for processing visas for Russian citizens, while also stressing a need "to ensure greater scrutiny in respect of Russian nationals or certain categories thereof."

"This step is a blatant interference in the internal affairs of our country. There is a return to the Western countries' policy of the times of bloc confrontation, which was aimed at creating conditions for a brain drain, behind it," Zakharova said in a statement published by the Russian foreign ministry.

According to the spokeswoman, dividing Russians into "useful" and "useless," labeling some of them as "unsafe" and talking about any "privileges" are "blatant manifestations of xenophobia and hatred" towards the country. Moreover, such actions are aimed at forcing Russian citizens to give up their support for the country's leadership and its independent foreign policy, Zakharova added.