OREANDA-NEWS  At the same time, the ministers agreed that the states will use their national capacities to keep cross border flows under control, top EU official specified, adding that having a visa does not guarantee entry.

According to European Commission spokeswoman Anitta Hipper, there are currently fewer than 1 million valid EU visas issued to Russian citizens, and not 12 million, as Latvian Foreign Minister Edgars Rinkevics said last week.The EU member states, after an informal meeting in Prague on August 31, reached a political agreement to suspend the EU-Russia visa facilitation deal and agreed to prepare recommendations on what to do with the existing visas already issued to Russians.

On February 24, Russia began a military operation in Ukraine, responding to calls for help from the Donbass republics of Donetsk and Lugansk. In response, the West and its allies have rolled out a comprehensive sanctions campaign against Moscow. A number of EU countries have reduced issuance of tourist visas to Russians, while also calling for a total ban on the issuance of Schengen visas to the country's citizens. Moscow has said that it considers the proposal a manifestation of chauvinism and that such a decision will invite retaliatory measures.