News: ​Spain wants a visa-free regime for Russians

The ambassador of Spain in Moscow has presented an initiative so that Russian citizens can travel to Europe without having to obtain a Schengen visa.

The ambassador of Spain in Moscow, José Ignacio Carbajal Gárate, has asked for the cancellation of the visa regime for the Schengen area in Russia.

"Each year, six million Russians travel to the EU countries, so it does not make sense to maintain these limitations," says the diplomat.

"We must convince our allies in the EU and the Schengen area that it does not make sense to maintain the mandatory visa for a country like Russia. This regime applies to a threat of mass immigration or to a threat to the security of the country, "said the ambassador.

He added that "Russia is not related to any of these indicators".

"But it is only possible to talk about the elimination of visas within the framework of the EU. No country can make this decision on its own.

Two years ago an agreement was signed between Russia and the EU to facilitate the process of obtaining the visa. Now a series of steps towards total cancellation are taking place. Unfortunately, this has not yet been achieved, but our government is at the head of the states that are trying to convince other countries in the Schengen area of the need to eliminate visas for Russians, "the ambassador said.

Natalie Tours General Director Natalia Vorobiova believes that it is very unlikely that visas will be eliminated from the Schengen area in the near future. "Another issue is that from now on it is easier to get that document to travel to Spain," says the expert.

"I do not think they will eliminate the visa regime soon for the simple reason that the ambassador said: Spain is within the Schengen area. Another thing is that at this time get a visa to Spain does not pose great problems for tourists. Everything is processed quite quickly, without problems, without an excessive requirement of documents, and also usually give a long enough visa. The next step that will be taken to soften the visa regime will surely be the lengthening of those granted, "says Vorobiova.

The number of Russian tourists visiting Spain throughout the year will now exceed the million for the first time.