Czechia and Poland are pushing to restrict the free movement of Russian diplomats within the Schengen Area.
The call of the two countries to ban Russian diplomats from entering member states other than the one they are accredited to comes amid growing espionage and sabotage concerns, Schengen.News reports.
As Rzeczpospolita explains, the authorities of both countries believe that this move would make it harder for Russian diplomats, who often provide counterintelligence cover, to conduct sabotage.
The initiative to impose movement restrictions on Russian diplomats originated in Prague, and several other countries have joined Czechia’s appeal, including Denmark, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, the Netherlands, and Romania.
The move has also been supported by security experts in Poland. The former head of Poland’s ABW counterintelligence service, Colonel Jacek Maka, said that any idea that is proposed with the aim of imposing barriers on Russians to conduct intelligence activities in Poland and other member states is justified.
Maka further highlighted that the initiative of Czechia is not without any reason, suggesting that the authorities have enough proof pushing them to make this decision, Rzeczpospolita notes.
Any idea that makes it harder for the Russians to conduct intelligence activities in Poland and the European Union is justified. It is not without reason that the initiative to limit the freedom of movement of de facto spies, and not diplomats, came from the initiative of the Czech services, which have been struggling with Russian intelligence activities for many years.
There Are Up to 400 Russian Agents in EU, Poland’s MFA Said
The head of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Poland, Radosław Sikorski, recently disclosed that there are around 2,000 Russian diplomats in the EU.
The services have estimated that around 20 per cent of those are intelligence officers, with Sikorski saying that this means around 400 agents get to move freely across the EU thanks to their diplomatic privileges and aid in hybrid operations.
To increase national security, since June 1, 2024, Poland has been applying tightened travel restrictions on Russian diplomats.
Travel of Russian diplomats and their families has been limited to the consular district for almost a year now. This means that Russian diplomats in Poland are permitted to move freely only within their consular district.
When wanting to take a trip outside this zone, they need to obtain permission from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and they are under the control of Polish services.