Germany urges EU to cut Russian holiday visas after Leipzig sabotage probe

Germany is urging European Union member states to restrict holiday visas for Russian citizens after a Belarusian national allegedly attempted to attack Leipzig airport, according to the Guardian. The suspect is said to have been in possession of a tourist visa issued by Italy, a detail that has reopened a fraught debate across the bloc about who issues Schengen visas and how carefully applicants are screened.

The Guardian reported on Friday that Berlin wants EU countries to stop issuing tourist visas to Russians, arguing that the bloc's common visa code is being exploited by individuals linked to sabotage and espionage campaigns. The Leipzig case has become a flashpoint because the visa was issued not by Germany but by Italy, raising questions about whether southern member states apply the same scrutiny as their northern partners.

For Trentino-Alto Adige, the story lands at the intersection of two of the region's most sensitive files: the Brenner corridor and the autonomy's uneasy relationship with Rome's foreign-policy choices. The region sits astride the main transit route between the EU's wealthy north and its Mediterranean south, and any tightening of visa rules will be felt first at border crossings that are already under strain.