EU may suspend simplified visa regulations for Belarus
MINSK, Jul 12 - PrimePress. The European Union (EU) says the simplified visa regime for Belarusian nationals may be suspended due to the growing flow of illegal migrants to Lithuania from Belarus, European Commissioner for Home Affairs Ylva Johansson said at during the hearing at the European Parliament on migration through the Lithuania-Belarus border held on July 12, 2021, TASS reports.<br> <br> According to Johansson, over 1,600 illegal migrants, mostly from Iraq, Congo and Cameroon, have arrived in Lithuania through Belarus, which is 22 times more than in entire 2020. The Commissioner stressed that they arrive in Belarus by commercial flights from Iraq (four times a week) and from Turkey (daily).<br> <br> She said that the issue of visas would continue to “guarantee contacts with ordinary Belarusians.”<br> <br> As previously reported, the Belarus-EU visa facilitation and readmission agreements entered into force on July 1, 2020. They simplified the procedure for obtaining Schengen visas, reduce their cost for Belarusian nationals from €80 to €35 euros, and regulated the rights of migrants from other countries. According to the readmission agreement, Belarus and the European Union undertook to return to their territory their citizens, third-country nationals and stateless persons who do not meet the criteria for legal stay established by the parties. <br> <br> On June 28, the Foreign Ministry of Belarus reported the suspension of the readmission agreement with the EU in response to the imposed sanctions. End<br> <br>
2021-07-12
Primepress
EU may suspend simplified visa regulations for Belarus
According to Johansson, over 1,600 illegal migrants, mostly from Iraq, Congo and Cameroon, have arrived in Lithuania through Belarus, which is 22 times more than in entire 2020. The Commissioner stressed that they arrive in Belarus by commercial flights from Iraq (four times a week) and from Turkey (daily).
She said that the issue of visas would continue to “guarantee contacts with ordinary Belarusians.”
As previously reported, the Belarus-EU visa facilitation and readmission agreements entered into force on July 1, 2020. They simplified the procedure for obtaining Schengen visas, reduce their cost for Belarusian nationals from €80 to €35 euros, and regulated the rights of migrants from other countries. According to the readmission agreement, Belarus and the European Union undertook to return to their territory their citizens, third-country nationals and stateless persons who do not meet the criteria for legal stay established by the parties.
On June 28, the Foreign Ministry of Belarus reported the suspension of the readmission agreement with the EU in response to the imposed sanctions. End