The Czech Republic has banned Russian diplomats and service passport holders who do not have Czech national accreditation from entering the country, Foreign Minister Jan Lipavsky said.
“Diversionary operations are increasing and we will not risk agents under diplomatic cover. We are setting an example for other countries and I will continue to push for as consistent measures as possible at the level of the entire Schengen area,” he wrote on social network X.
The Russian side has not yet reacted to this decision by Prague.
Last December, Lipavsky speculated that Russia could be involved in a hundred suspicious incidents in Europe in 2024.
Since the start of Russia’s war against Ukraine, Western countries have regularly reported the expulsion of Russian diplomats and reduced the staff of Russian diplomatic missions. Moscow has usually responded to such moves in a mirror-like manner.
In June 2024, Czech Foreign Minister Jan Lipavsky confirmed in an interview with Radio Liberty that the foreign ministers of eight EU countries had sent a letter to then EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell asking him to restrict the movement of Russian diplomats.
He said that the measure was necessary because the movement of Russian diplomats and their family members in the Schengen zone “creates an infrastructure” for illegal activities.