Foreign Ministry announcement on decision by Russian Federation to abolish visa regime to a part of Latvia's population

The Foreign Ministry has been monitoring a debate in the Russian State Duma on a decision by the Russian Federation to abolish the visa regime for non-citizens of Latvia. The Foreign Ministry has already previously expressed the opinion that at present, while the EU and the Russian Federation are holding talks as part of the visa dialogue on setting up relaxed requirements for mutual travel, such a decision, which concerns only a part of the population, will not facilitate further development of the EU-Russian Federation dialogue.

At the same time, we consider that the decision by the Russian Federation to abolish the visa regime for Latvian non-citizens will not encourage Latvia's effort to speed up the process of naturalisation and to create a united and integrated community in Latvia. Also, it will not ensure opportunities for non-citizens to enjoy the benefits provided by the status of an EU citizen.

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