E.U. Makes It Easier To Tighten Visa-Free Travel In Schengen Area
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The European Parliament and Council have agreed on a provisional new system to restrict visa-free travel in the Schengen zone of free movement. With citizens of 61 non-EU countries currently enjoying visa-free travel, the proposed changes, which still need to be formally adopted, could have a significant impact on millions of prospective travelers, particularly those from countries who fall out with the EU over human rights and visa policy.
What has been agreed is meant to make it easier for the EU to suspend visa-free travel for a particular third-country if there is some suspicion that country is abusing the 'privilege' or in some other way not honoring the agreement. The can include, according to the text from the Parliament, 'security concerns and human rights violations.'
This security and human rights focus seems to be of particular concern for European policymakers.
'Visa-free travel to the EU benefits foreign citizens and the EU alike,' said Radosław Sikorski, Minister for Foreign Affairs for Poland, which currently holds the rotating EU presidency. 'But if citizens of third countries abuse this advantage, the EU must have all necessary tools in place to correct the situation.'
The text of the agreement appears to allude to the concept of migration as a form of 'hybrid warfare,' meaning it is worried that some countries with visa-free travel may become the source of an increase in irregular migration, deliberately provoked by countries looking to overwhelm the EU's asylum system and sow political disunity. This doesn't make a whole lot of sense given that Belarus - the current source of irregular migration as alleged 'hybrid warfare' - has had its visa-free travel suspended, and it is unclear how or why any other country which does enjoy the privilege would use their own citizens in such a way.
More broadly, the new system would also make it easier to trigger a suspension if there is a sharp increase in asylum applications from citizens of a given country. It would also clamp down if a country has a so-called 'Golden Visa' system, where wealthy foreign nationals (i.e. Russians) can effectively buy citizenship of a country with visa-free travel and then get into the EU that way. Vanuatu, which has such a scheme, saw its visa-free travel exemption suspended in 2022, and subsequently revoked.
The reformed system will also make it easier to suspend visa-free travel for citizens of countries involved in human rights breaches or non-compliance with international court decisions. According to Euronews, it is suspected this mechanism may be invoked against Israeli citizens, amid the ongoing war in Gaza, and also possibly against Serbia due to human rights issues there. Notably, part of the mechanism appears to allow for visa restrictions to be targeted against specific individuals, namely officials or legislators of a given country that may hold responsibility for human rights abuses.
'Visa policy can contribute to upholding EU values by ensuring that there are consequences when a foreign government breaches human rights and international law,' said Slovenian MEP Matjaž Nemec, after the new measures were provisionally approved. "In such cases, their government representatives and diplomats should have their visa-free access to the EU revoked, and this agreement makes that more likely.'
The provisional visa agreement still needs to be formally adopted by the European Parliament and Council.
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