Estonia has imposed a lifelong ban on entry to the country for about 1,500 Russian servicemen who took part in the war against Ukraine, and calls on the European Union to join. This was stated by Estonian Minister Ihor Taro as he arrived for the meeting of EU justice and interior ministers in Brussels, according to a Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty correspondent in Brussels.

According to him, Estonia proposes discussing such restrictions at the EU level – a lifelong ban on entry to the Schengen Area for all former Russian combatants who fought against Ukraine.

Estonia’s Position and the EU Reaction

There are hundreds of thousands of such people – they are learning to kill, to destroy, to do horrific things. And we do not want them to come to Europe, because they would become highly useful instruments for organized crime

– Ihor Taro

According to him, Europe has already faced a similar situation in the 1990s, when the Russian mafia became more active.

There will be attempts, there will be gang wars, there will be explosions and the killings of innocent people, and blood on the streets if we do not react

– Ihor Taro

He noted that Tallinn received the relevant lists in cooperation with the Ukrainian side and verified the individuals’ identification data. After this, a lifelong ban on entry was imposed for 1,500 people.

The minister added that Tallinn calls on other EU countries to support this initiative, as it concerns not only Estonia’s security but the security of Europe as a whole.

Estonia is promoting the initiative to ban entry into the Schengen Area for Russian troops who took part in the war against Ukraine. The idea was laid out in a discussion document, which Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty reviewed and which was circulated to EU capitals at the end of January. It was briefly discussed at the bloc’s foreign ministers meeting in Brussels on January 29.

According to Tallinn, since the start of the full-scale invasion in Ukraine in February 2022, about 1.5 million Russian citizens have taken part in combat. This includes soldiers of Russia’s regular armed forces as well as affiliated formations, including the Wagner Group.

Of them, an estimated 640 thousand are still directly involved in combat operations. This means that almost a million former fighters could potentially fall under EU restrictions.

Ukraine supports such an initiative. Foreign Minister Andriy Sibiga noted that, firstly, this decision would be beneficial for the long-term national security of European countries and the protection of their citizens from “Russian bandits.”

Secondly, this will set the right price for the wrong choice: every Russian who signs a contract to invade Ukraine will know that he is also signing himself a lifelong ban on entry to Europe

– Andriy Sibiga

Ultimately, the discussion continues, but support among EU countries for joint measures to restrict border crossing for Russian troops who fought against Ukraine, and to strengthen the continent’s security, is growing.