The visa regime with the Russian Federation, which will come into force on July 1, is a well-thought-out step to protect the national security of Ukraine, said the head of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Dmitry Kuleba.

“From the very beginning of the aggression, the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry advocated the introduction of a visa regime with the Russian Federation. The time has come for such a decision.. This is a thoughtful step that will protect the national security of our state.. And it is symbolic that the decision on the visa regime with the Russians coincided with the announcement by the European Commission of the recommendation to grant Ukraine the status of an EU candidate. The direction of movement of our state is obvious,” Kuleba was quoted in the press service of the Foreign Ministry..

The head of the department added that we must clearly understand who, from where and for what purpose comes to Ukraine. Kuleba noted that the visa regime will help identify individuals who threaten national security far from our state.

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On Friday, June 17, the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine terminated the agreement between the governments of Ukraine and the Russian Federation on visa-free travel of citizens from July 1, 2022 and, in fact, introduced a visa regime for Russian citizens.

The day before, President Volodymyr Zelensky announced that Ukraine would introduce a visa regime for entry for Russian citizens to counter threats to national security, sovereignty and territorial integrity of our state..