Home Latest News EU Parliament Wants U.S. Citizens to Get Visas

EU Parliament Wants U.S. Citizens to Get Visas

by AFP

Daniel Roland—AFP

Non-binding resolution says visas should be required for U.S. citizens as long as America refuses to allow permit-free travel for five bloc nations.

The European Parliament on Thursday said U.S. citizens should have to get visas to visit the EU as long as Washington refuses to allow permit-free travel for five of the bloc’s countries.

A non-binding resolution passed by a show of hands said the European Commission, the EU’s executive arm, was “legally obliged to take measures temporarily reintroducing visa requirements for U.S. citizens” within two months. Any move to reintroduce visa requirements for U.S. citizens would have to be approved by member states first, a process, which could take years.

“Citizens of Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Poland and Romania still cannot enter U.S. territory without a visa, while U.S. citizens can travel to all EU countries visa-free,” a parliament statement said.

The Commission should suspend the visa waiver system for U.S. nationals for 12 months, it said.

The parliament statement noted that Canada also imposed visa requirements on Bulgarian and Romanian citizens but these restrictions were now due to be lifted in December. The spat comes at a time when the European Union is keeping a wary eye on new U.S. President Donald Trump who has attacked the EU, welcomed Brexit and imposed an immigrant ban on seven mainly Muslim countries which was later overturned by a court.

A spokeswoman for EU Migration Commissioner Dimitris Avramopoulos acknowledged the resolution and said he had resumed efforts to obtain full visa reciprocity during a recent visit to Washington. “Our approach of continued engagement and patient diplomatic contacts brought tangible results with Canada,” the spokeswoman said. “Our assessment of the situation with the U.S. has not changed and we will continue our discussions.”

Related Articles

Leave a Comment