A Polish deputy foreign minister has reiterated calls for the European Union to introduce more restrictive visa rules for Russian citizens over Moscow’s nearly six-month-old war in Ukraine.
Szymon Szynkowski vel Sęk told public broadcaster Polish Radio on Monday that Poland “has limited the issuance of visas to humanitarian situations” and now “demand[s] that a restrictive policy be introduced at the EU level to stop issuing tourist visas to Russians.”
According to him, such visas “are mainly used by wealthy Russians who live in large cities and who often vocally support Putin’s policies.”
Finland, Estonia, Latvia, and Denmark are among the countries that have already instituted tourist visa bans for Russian citizens, according to the PAP news agency.
Lithuania’s foreign minister, Gabrielius Landsbergis, stated last week that it would be “perfect if the whole EU made a decision to rescind the visas, and no one would be issuing them any longer.”
He warned that Russian citizens could easily find their way around the ban unless all EU countries joined forces.
Today is day 181 of the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
Source: Radio Poland
Four more ships carrying foodstuffs have left Ukraine’s ports, Türkiye’s Defense Ministry announced over the weekend.
In July, Ukraine and Russia came to an agreement with the UN and Türkiye to restore food shipments from Ukrainian ports on the Black Sea.
As part of the agreement, 31 ships carrying some 670,000 tonnes of grain have now been able to leave Ukrainian ports.
The move aims to address global food insecurity and throw a lifeline to the hunger-stricken African countries of Ethiopia, Kenya, Somalia, Sudan, and South Sudan.
Before the Russian invasion, Ukraine exported up to 6 million tons of grain per month from its ports on the Black Sea and Sea of Azov.
Source: Radio Poland, Radio Gdańsk
Polish director Jerzy Skolimowski’s “EO” has made the longlist for this year’s European Film Awards, Europe’s version of the Oscars.
The Polish-Italian co-production is a modern interpretation of the 1960s cult classic “Au Hasard Balthazar” (Balthazar, at Random) by Robert Bresson, which follows a donkey as he changes owners, most of whom mistreat him.
The film premiered at the Cannes Film Festival earlier this year, where it took home the Grand Jury Prize.
Skolimowski, 84, is one of Poland’s most internationally renowned directors, and co-wrote the script to “EO” with Ewa Piaskowska. Last month he won the Ischia Visconti Legend Award at the Global Film & Music Festival in Italy.
The shortlist for the European Film Awards will be made public on November 8, and the European Film Awards ceremony will be held in Reykjavík, Iceland, on December 10.
Source: Radio Poland
In honor of the 40th anniversary of the founding of the underground organization Fighting Solidarity, Radio Gdańsk will be broadcasting a series of special interviews all this week.
Each day after 17:30, Radio Gdańsk will broadcast programs based on interviews with activists from the Fighting Solidarity Branch in Trójmiasto, incl. Andrzej Kołodziej, Roman Zwiercan, Ewa Kubasiewicz, Magdalena Kowalska-Czachor, Marek Czachor, Karol Krementowski, Piotr Jagielski, and Jadwiga Chmielowska.
The interviews are part of the ongoing media campaign “#Memory. The Trójmiasto Branch of Fighting Solidarity,” which will culminate in a concert and live debate on Friday at 18:00 in the Concert Studio of Radio Gdańsk.
More information on the Fighting Solidarity movement and the program of events is available online at radiogdansk.pl.
Source: Radio Gdańsk
Weather
Today will be mostly overcast and warm, with a chance of rainstorms throughout the day and a light breeze coming in from the northeast. Temperatures will peak around a high of 23°C, or 74°F, dropping to an overnight low of 18°C or 65°F. Similar weather is expected for tomorrow, with a chance for sunshine and clearer skies returning midweek.
Elizabeth Peck
