EU foreign ministers have signalled broad support for tightening visa rules for Russian tourists, after reports that one of the suspects in the failed drone attack on Leipzig/Halle airport entered the bloc on a tourist visa.
High Representative Kaja Kallas said there was “broad support” for the step at the close of an informal meeting of foreign ministers in County Wicklow, eastern Ireland, on September 2. She added that ministers had not reached unanimity.
German outlets Süddeutsche Zeitung, NDR and WDR reported that one of two suspects, who holds Russian and Belarusian citizenship, travelled to Germany on a Schengen visa issued by Italy. The other is said to be a Russian-born holder of a Latvian passport.
Kallas said it was for German authorities to confirm or deny the reports. If accurate, she said, they would show that visas were a tool for people who meant harm to the European Union.
Several member states had warned for some time that tourist permits were being used for acts of sabotage, she said. She expressed hope the case would persuade capitals that have resisted visa curbs.
The Estonian politician said there was also broad backing for an entry ban on Russian ex-combatants, although no final decision was taken. France and Italy have resisted that measure, warning it could become a blanket ban on all Russian nationals.
Kallas set the proposals against a run of attacks near the bloc’s borders, airspace violations and what she described as clear threats to member state territory. She said the Leipzig attempt bore the hallmarks of State-sponsored terrorism rather than an isolated incident.
Germany attributed the August 4 attempt to Russia on September 1 and ordered the closure of Moscow’s consulate general in Bonn by September 18. The EU summoned Russia’s representative in Brussels, and France, Belgium, Portugal and the Netherlands called in Russian ambassadors.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, speaking in Brussels alongside NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte, said Leipzig marked “a new escalation on European soil”. She said the bloc was examining ways to cut deeper into Russia’s war chest.
Mediterranean states that depend on summer visitors have been among the most reluctant to curb tourist permits. Russian nationals lost access to multiple-entry Schengen visas in November 2025 and must now apply for each trip.
The European External Action Service has circulated a proposal to list about 1,600 more Russian individuals and companies, mostly linked to the defence sector, with adoption expected in October. Kallas said attempts to intimidate Europe would fail.
