A group of European Union leaders, including Germany’s Friedrich Merz and Poland’s Donald Tusk, are calling on Brussels to introduce stricter visa regulations for Russian citizens who have taken part in the war in Ukraine.

Axar.az informs, citing Politico, in a letter addressed to Antonio Costa, President of the European Council, and Ursula von der Leyen, President of the European Commission, eight leaders cautioned that Russia’s war against Ukraine could pose long-term security threats to the EU’s Schengen Area.

They argued that demobilized or rotating combatants, including thousands recruited from prisons, could seek to travel to EU countries, potentially fueling organized crime, violent offences or hostile state activity. They say rising numbers of visas issued to Russian nationals add urgency to the issue.