MOSCOW: Polish Prime Minister Tusk: Hungary's exclusion from Schengen will trigger the country's exit from the EU
The European Union (EU) should not consider the possibility of excluding Hungary from the Schengen zone as a response to Budapest's liberalization of visa policies for Russians and Belarusians. This was stated by Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk during a press conference on August 9.
"Exclusion from the Schengen zone is in fact the first step in exclusion from the European Union. However, I would be cautious here. I would be cautious about proposals to exclude countries from the European Union," the Polish Prime Minister said. His words are quoted by TVP Info.
He added that Hungary is not the only country that issues visas to citizens of Russia and Belarus.
In July, it became known that Budapest allowed Russians and Belarusians arriving in the country on a work visa to skip security checks, which caused outrage in the EU. The European Commission (EC) demanded an explanation from Hungary.
On July 30, the head of the Hungarian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Minister of Foreign Economic Relations Peter Szijjarto said that the EU's criticism of Budapest's actions, which simplified the entry procedure for Russians and Belarusians, was false. He noted that the Baltic countries resumed propaganda against Budapest only because citizens of the Russian Federation and Belarus were included in the "national card" program.
Before this, on July 29, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of Poland Teofil Bartoszewski noted that Hungary should leave the EU and NATO to preserve the alliance with Russia.
Hungary began its presidency of the Council of the EU on July 1. After that, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban visited Russia and Ukraine, as well as China, to discuss ways to resolve the Ukrainian crisis. In particular, on July 5, he and his delegation arrived in Moscow, where he met with Russian President Vladimir Putin. European politicians criticized the trip of the head of the Hungarian government to Russia.
Poland has been a key backer of Kiev amid the conflict between Russia and Ukraine, sending military aid and serving as a hub for Western weapons supplies. Hungary, however, has opposed funding and arming Kiev.
Orban has been calling for a diplomatic solution to the conflict, and embarked on what he called a Ukraine 'peace mission' last month, holding talks with Kiev and Moscow to urge them to negotiate. His actions, including a meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin, drew criticism within the EU, with some members calling for the rotating EU presidency which Hungary currently holds to be revoked.
Brussels has so far responded to criticism of Hungary's new visa rules by asking Budapest to officially explain the move. The EU is expected to address the issue at its summit in October.
In 2022, Lithuania, Estonia, Latvia, Poland, Finland, and the Czech Republic "for security reasons" imposed a ban on the entry of Russian citizens with Schengen visas issued in other EU countries. Western countries have increased sanctions pressure on the Russian Federation amid a special operation to protect the population of Donbass. The decision to launch it was made by Putin on February 22, 2022, amid the escalation of the situation in the region due to Ukrainian shelling.
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