The President of Russia, Vladimir Putin, has signed a decree that facilitates the entry of citizens of Ukraine into Russia.
Based on the decree signed on Friday, citizens of Ukraine are permitted to enter Russia without a visa on a foreign Ukrainian passport, diplomatic or service passport, or an identity card of a sailor or an aircraft crew member, VisaGuide.World reports.
The same confirmed that Ukrainians are eligible to enter Russia with expired documents.
A birth certificate or a passport of a legal representative holding information about the child will be required for children.
According to the announcement, Ukrainian children will be permitted to leave Russia with a legal representative or with an adult who has notarized consent.
A visa-free travel agreement between Russia and Ukraine, permitting both countries’ citizens to enter each other’s territories, has been effective since 1997. The agreement was terminated by Ukraine on January 1, 2023.
Following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine on February 24, 2022, foreign diplomatic and consular missions of Ukraine stopped their activities in Russia; thus, Russian citizens are required to apply for a visa when planning to reach Ukraine.
“Citizens of the Russian Federation residing in the territories of the third countries with temporary or permanent permission of stay can apply for their Ukrainian visas through Ukraine’s diplomatic missions or visa centres managed by the external service provider (the VFS Global),” Ukraine’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced through a statement.
The same noted that Russians residing in Belarus, Georgia, and Kazakhstan could apply for visas through Ukraine’s diplomatic missions or visa centres managed by VFS Global in these countries.
Russia’s invasion of Ukraine led a large number of countries to impose sanctions considered among the harshest in recent years. Previously, the EU Commission also suspended the EU’s Visa Facilitation Agreement with Russia.
Through a statement, the European Commission said that a country waging a war of aggression like Russia should not qualify for visa facilitation as long as it continues conducting its destructive foreign policy as well as military aggression towards Ukraine.
Among the sanctions was also the importation of goods using Russian-flagged vessels.
The Commission also noted that since April 16, 2022, EU sanctions prohibit vessels registered under the Russian flag from accessing EU ports. This also applied to vessels that have re-registered from Russia’s flag to the flag of another country after February 24.
In addition, the EU and the US imposed a flight ban on Russian planes. The decision was confirmed by the Head of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen.
