From Bucha to Schengen: Europe wants to close entry for Russians who fought against Ukraine

Leaders of eight European countries have called on the EU leadership to restrict entry into the Schengen area for Russian citizens who participated in the war against Ukraine. Among the signatories are the leaders of Germany, Poland, Romania, Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, Finland, and Sweden. In a letter addressed to European Council President Antonio Costa and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, they directly link such individuals to risks for the EU’s internal security.

For the Israeli audience, this does not seem distant and purely Brussels-based. Israel has long lived in a reality where war does not end with the last salvo, and its participants, networks, habits, and methods then transition into other spaces—from crime to hybrid operations. Europe seems to be starting to view this problem in much the same way.

Another important point: this is not yet a pan-European ban, but political pressure on Brussels ahead of the European Council meeting. That is, it is not yet a ready norm, but an attempt to turn the security issue into a pan-European solution.

Why the issue of former Russian military personnel has become an internal security concern for the EU

The authors of the appeal did not limit themselves to moral arguments. They described a quite practical risk: people who have gone through war as part of the Russian army may be associated with serious crimes, organized crime, extremist movements, and hostile activities within Russia’s hybrid actions against EU countries. This is exactly how this threat is formulated in the letter reported by European media.

This is a noticeable shift. Not long ago, such discussions in Europe were often conducted in terms of morality, sanctions, and political responsibility. Now the focus is increasingly shifting to the logic of counterintelligence, border protection, and internal stability.

Europe increasingly views war as an export of threat

According to LRT, the letter also emphasizes that among those who fought on Russia’s side were recruited prisoners, and the problem concerns not only former but also current participants in the war against Ukraine. Leaders of eight countries propose using existing tools—from visa and residence permit refusals to long-term entry bans across the Schengen area.

For Israel, this logic is understandable without additional explanations. A person who has gone through war, violence, and a culture of impunity does not automatically become an ‘ordinary tourist’ just because they crossed the border and changed into civilian clothes. Especially if it is a war where mass crimes, deportations, torture, and systematic destruction of civilian infrastructure are documented.

Brussels has long been moving towards this conversation, but now the tone is changing

As early as January 2026, Euronews reported that the EU began considering the idea of a ban on entry for Russian military personnel who fought against Ukraine. At that time, the Estonian side directly warned: after the war, Europe may face a flow of people with combat experience, criminal backgrounds, and a high degree of radicalization. European diplomacy chief Kaja Kallas confirmed that many states supported further development of this proposal.

In other words, the current letter from the eight leaders is not a one-day flash but a continuation of a line that has been making its way within the EU for several months.

Why this decision is important not only for Ukraine but for the entire European space

At the center of this story is not only Ukraine. At the center is the question of whether Europe is ready to recognize that the Russian war exports threats. Not only missiles, not only cyberattacks, not only sabotage. Also people accustomed to violence and embedded in a culture of war that the Kremlin has been turning into a norm for years.

According to LRT, the signatory countries also draw attention to visa statistics: after a sharp decline in the early years of the full-scale war, the number of Schengen visas issued to Russian citizens slightly increased again in 2024—from about 517,000 to 541,000. Against this backdrop, the issue of filtering those associated with the war has ceased to be theoretical for part of the EU.

For Israel, there is a very recognizable lesson here

Israeli reality has long taught a simple thing: threats rarely come in pure form and under their own name. Sometimes it’s a missile. Sometimes it’s a network of influence. Sometimes it’s a person with a military past who formally enters as a private individual but actually turns out to be a conduit for completely different interests.

And when НАновости — Новости Израиля | Nikk.Agency writes about the attempt to close Schengen for Russians who fought against Ukraine, it is not about a symbolic gesture for headlines. It is a story about how Europe gradually recognizes that the war Russia is waging against Ukraine does not remain within Ukrainian borders. It produces risks that then reach the entire continent.

But there is also a complex side to the issue

Not everyone in Europe views the mechanism of such a ban the same way. Euronews cited the position of Polish Foreign Minister Radosław Sikorski, who allowed that in some cases it might be better to let such people enter Europe so that they can then be detained and prosecuted for war crimes. This shows that the debate in the EU is not about the danger itself, but about how exactly to deal with it—whether to not let them in immediately or to let them in for subsequent justice.

That is, Europe faces not only a political but also a legal choice. And it will not be easy.

What this signal says about the state of Europe itself

The letter from the eight leaders is essentially an acknowledgment that the contours of the post-war threat are already being discussed now, even though the war itself has not ended. Europe no longer wants to pretend that the issue will arise later, someday, after a hypothetical truce.

This is an important turn. Because previously, the EU often reacted to Moscow’s actions with noticeable delay. Now part of the European capitals is trying to play ahead.

For Ukraine, this is a politically important signal of support. For Israel, it is yet another confirmation that Western democracies, albeit slowly and with internal disputes, are beginning to take the hybrid nature of modern wars more seriously. And for Europe itself, it is a test of maturity: whether it can consider security not only as a foreign policy issue but also as a matter of borders, visas, criminal risks, and long-term memory of war.