Bloomberg: Two EU countries oppose entry ban for former Russian military personnel — this is a proposal for the 21st sanctions package

Italy and France are not convinced by the European Unionʼs proposal to ban entry for former Russian servicemen who fought against Ukraine.

Bloomberg writes about this, citing sources.

The proposal is part of the EUʼs draft 21st package of sanctions against Russia, which member states are due to discuss on June 26. Sources say Italy and France are not opposed to banning former Russian servicemen from entering the EU, but they are concerned that it could pave the way for a complete ban on Russians. They believe the issue is best addressed through the EUʼs visa policy.

Rome and Paris believe that banning entry for participants in the war against Ukraine would leave it up to EU countries to determine who participated in hostilities and who did not. The position of France and Italy is that this is not so easy to do.

• The 21st package of sanctions against Russia was presented by European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen on June 9. In particular, the media wrote that the EU is discussing the possibility of including the head of the Russian Orthodox Church Patriarch Kirill in the sanctions list — this decision was previously blocked by Hungary. Now, the new Prime Minister of Bulgaria Rumen Radev has spoken out against sanctions against the patriarch.

For more news and in-depth stories from Ukraine, please follow us on X.