The EU will not recognize foreign passports issued in the occupied territories of Ukraine.

On October 12, EU ambassadors agreed on a mandate for negotiations with the European Parliament regarding the decision not to recognize Russian foreign passports issued in the temporarily occupied territories of Ukraine and Georgia, the EU Council reported. This decision is a response to Russia’s aggression against Ukraine and Russia’s practice of issuing foreign passports to the citizens of occupied territories. It also follows Russia’s unilateral decision to recognize the independence of the Georgian territories of Abkhazia and South Ossetia in 2008. Thus, documents issued by the Russian Federation in the occupied territories will not be accepted as valid for obtaining a visa or crossing the borders of the Schengen zone.