Brussels (The Brussels Morning Newspaper) – The EPP president MEP Manfred Weber called Hungary’s decision to facilitate its entry conditions for Russians “questionable” and cautioned of the heightened risk of spies penetrating the bloc in a letter transmitted to European Council President Charles Michel.
Why Did Manfred Weber Criticize Hungary’s New Visa System?
The head of the centre-right party EPP, Manfred Weber, has criticised Hungary’s recent decision to simplify visa rules for Russian visitors by presenting a new fast-track visa system. Hungary has introduced a new visa regime for eight nations, including Russia and Belarus. The policy stated to be designed for seasonal workers under its National Card programme, would permit visitors to enter the country without security checks and encourage them to move freely to other EU countries.
What Are the Security Risks of Hungary’s Visa Policy?
The “questionable” new rules “initiate grave loopholes for espionage activities, … potentially permitting large numbers of Russians to penetrate Hungary with the tiniest supervision, posing a serious risk to national security,” Weber stated. “This policy could also make it easier for Russians to move around the Schengen area, bypassing the restrictions required by EU law,” he said.
What Is the European Commission’s Response to Hungary’s Policy?
Brussels is already in touch with Hungarian authorities over this issue, as lowered checks on Russian citizens could pose a danger to the continent’s security, the European Commission‘s spokesperson stated. “Our position throughout our policy is that Russia is a security threat to the EU and hence all instruments at the union level and member state level need to ensure the safety of the union and also take into account the security of the Schengen,” Anitta Hipper described.
What Are the Broader EU Concerns Over Hungary’s Visa Policy?
Russian citizens are not prohibited from entering the EU and the border control-free Schengen zone, which also contains non-EU members Norway and Switzerland. However, a string of sanction packages in reaction to the Kremlin’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, including a prohibition on Russian-owned airlines operating in EU airspace, made it more challenging for Russian nationals to travel to the bloc.
At the same time, restrictions on issuing work permits are a matter of national policy, and each EU member state can resolve its criteria. Earlier this year, Hungary revamped its immigration law, making it harder for certain types of third-country nationals to acquire residence permits.
Orbán’s behaviour also began a diplomatic spat with neighbouring Poland. Poland’s Deputy Foreign Minister Władysław Teofil Bartoszewski expressed Hungary should “join a union with Putin” after Orbán lobbed a series of charges against Warsaw for its alleged duplicitous actions.
“We do not do business with Russia, unlike Prime Minister Orbán, who is on the margins of international society — both in the European Union and NATO,” Bartoszewski stated.
