Czech Republic Calls for Restrictions on the Movement of Russian Diplomats and Their Families in the Schengen Area
Czech Foreign Minister Jan Lipavsky has proposed to add restrictions on the movement of Russian diplomats and their families in the Schengen area to the new package of sanctions against Russia, the Czech Foreign Ministry's website reports.
"The Czech Republic is in favour of restricting the movement of employees of Russian diplomatic missions and their family members only within the territory of the state where they are accredited. It is not right for Russian diplomats to use Schengen. We will make every effort to ensure that our proposal is included in the 13th package of sanctions," said Minister Lipavsky.
At this year's first meeting of the Foreign Affairs Council in Brussels, EU foreign ministers discussed Russia's aggression against Ukraine and the situation in the Middle East.
During their discussion of Russia's aggression against Ukraine, the EU foreign ministers focused on the importance of continuing military and financial support for Ukraine and negotiations on a new package of the European Instrument for Peace. Ministers agreed that Ukraine's security is closely linked to the EU's security, and that strong support is therefore essential.
"Ukraine's security is also linked to our security. That is why we must continue to provide military and financial support to Ukraine in its defence against Russian aggression," the Czech diplomat added.
Ukraine's Minister for Foreign Affairs Dmytro Kuleba also joined the meeting on Ukraine via videoconference, as usual. Following the decision to launch negotiations on Ukraine and Moldova's accession to the EU in December 2023, the ministers welcomed the European Commission's decision to start reviewing the legislation of both countries and preparing a framework for negotiations on their accession. In addition, Minister Lipavsky expressed support for the preparation of a new package of EU sanctions against Russia and steps to counteract their circumvention.
As The Gaze previously reported, the Czech government supported Ukraine's "Peace Formula" and recognised the 10-point peace plan proposed by President Volodymyr Zelenskyy as the only acceptable option to end the Russian-Ukrainian war, which has been going on for two years. The Czech Republic is also expanding its support for Ukraine and offering its experience in protecting nuclear facilities