Commission proposes freezing Russia visa-facilitation pact

The European Commission proposed on Tuesday suspending the so-called visa-facilitation pact with Russia, in place since 2007. Russian citizens will have to go through a longer visa-application process, except for those who are family members of EU citizens, journalists, dissidents and civil society representatives. This follows a political agreement reached by EU foreign affairs ministers, although some EU countries have called for a ban on Russian tourists.