INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
Russians are facing longer-than-normal waiting times for Schengen visas as tit-for-tat diplomatic expulsions have left European embassies in
slots at the visa centers of France, Greece and Spain fully booked for July, according to travel agencies interviewed by the RBC business
including the Czech Republic,Latvia and Estonia, have stopped issuing tourist visas to Russian citizens.The Netherlands also stopped issuing
Europe has closed its airspace to Russian airlines and vice versa due to the war in Ukraine, meaning travelers must fly to cities like
Istanbul or Dubai before continuing on to Europe.Russians were granted around 4 million Schengen visas in 2019 before the Covid-19 pandemic,
or about one-quarter of all Schengen visas issued worldwide, RBC reported, citing European Union data.
