The European Union may sign an agreement with Russia to ease visa procedures for short-term stays within the next six months, a senior EU diplomat said on Tuesday.
Speaking at a news conference in Moscow, Michael Webb, chargé d’affaires of the EU delegation to Russia, said an agreement to ease visas for up to 90 days was expected to be in place within the next six months.
At a summit in Brussels last month, top EU officials and Russian President Dmitry Medvedev agreed on “common steps” toward a visa-free regime.
José Manuel Barroso, the president of the European Commission, warned, however, that the lifting of EU visa requirement for Russians was still years away.
