The standoff continues between Washington and Moscow over the size of their respective embassies: the United States has stopped issuing immigration visas to Russia, forcing Russians who want to apply to travel to Poland.
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American diplomacy justified this very restrictive change on Sunday by the restrictions imposed by the Russian authorities, who denounced
"a humiliation close to sadism"
.
"We will no longer give new appointments for immigration visas to Russian nationals in Moscow,"
a spokesperson for the US State Department told AFP.
These appointments are transferred to the United States Embassy in Warsaw, he added, adding that this decision had entered into force on October 12.
On the State Department's website, Russia was added to the list of countries
"where the United States has no consular representation or whose political or security situation is sufficiently precarious or uncertain for consular staff limited is not allowed to consider '
visa applications.
The ten or so countries concerned include states at war or enemies of Washington such as Cuba, Iran, Venezuela or Syria.
"We are aware that this is an important change for visa applicants
," assured the spokesperson, calling on them not to plan a trip to Poland before having an appointment assigned for a meeting.
He acknowledged that this was not an
“ideal solution”
.
"A humiliation close to sadism"
According to American diplomacy, it is
"the decision of the Russian government to prohibit the United States from employing"
Russian personnel or of third countries locally which is at the origin of this decision.
This
"seriously affects"
its
"ability to provide consular services"
as the US embassy has had to part with dozens of local staff.
“The extremely limited number of consular employees in Russia currently does not allow us to guarantee routine visa or assistance services to American citizens
,
” the
State Department spokesman added.
The issuance of regular work visas had already been suspended in May, for similar reasons, but Washington had warned this summer that other measures were possible.
Overall, the US Embassy in Moscow will continue to provide only
“diplomatic or official visas”
.
The American authorities
"destroyed"
their consular system in Russia and
"transformed a banal technical procedure for the twenty-first century into real hell,"
lamented Russian diplomacy spokeswoman Maria Zakharova on her Telegram account on Sunday, citing
"a humiliation close to sadism ”
.
"It is a blow to families and loved ones, these links which keep relations between countries and their peoples alive
," she added, also denouncing an attack on
"freedom of movement"
.
Several waves of cross-expulsions of diplomats between the two rival countries have seriously disrupted the functioning of their respective embassies and consulates in recent years.
Moscow and Washington pass the buck regularly.
This question was one of the main topics discussed during the visit to Russia two weeks ago by the number three of the American diplomacy Victoria Nuland, without however allowing to reach a solution.
