EU gives Russians MORE tourist visas

You’re reading Rapporteur on Wednesday 6 May. This is Nicoletta Ionta in Brussels.

Need-to-knows:

🟢 Surge in Russian tourist visas in Europe🟢 Whistleblowers line up to denounce EESC🟢 Romanian government collapse reverberates in Brussels

On the roundabout: Which EU spokesman told someone to “get off fucking Twitter”?

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From the capital

Russians, it turns out, are still enjoying their holidays in Europe.

While Moscow continued to bombard Ukraine and kill civilians in 2025, EU governments issued more than 620,000 visas to Russian nationals, up 10.2% compared to 2024, according to confidential data we obtained.

The French Riviera, Italy’s lakes, and Spain’s beaches remain on the itinerary of Russians enjoying a peaceful mini-break. These three countries top the list. France in particular saw the strongest surge in 2025 compared to 2024. It’s little wonder, then, that Paris queried the inclusion of the data in an official document during internal EU discussions.

These numbers made the strongest supporters of Ukraine around the table deeply uncomfortable. For months, the Balts and Nordics pushed for a tougher line on tourist visas for Russians, arguing European governments should not be welcoming Russians while the Kremlin wages war on the EU’s doorstep.

At the centre of the row is the little-known Schengen barometer, an internal Commission monitoring tool which typically shows how many visas Russians are receiving. The biggest issuers, France chief among them, were unhappy that the numbers had been included at all.

For a period France scored a diplomatic victory, when the numbers were removed from the latest barometer. But after pushback from member states, including but not only the Baltics, the numbers were put back in.

The Commission declined to say whether national governments exerted pressure, but confirmed it provided EU countries with an updated overview of visas issued to Russian nationals in April.

The EU-Russia border, it seems, can still be crossed, but not without generating friction on both sides.

Stay tuned for our full story on Euractiv.com this morning.

Whistleblowers stack up at EU committee

Something’s afoot at the European Economic and Social Committee, an obscure EU advisory body linking policymakers with civil society. Rapporteur can reveal that three EESC staffers, if not more, have individually notified the EU’s anti-fraud office OLAF about misconduct by the body’s secretary general, Isabelle Le Galo Flores, over the past two years.

Those three complaints come on top of an official notification the EESC made to OLAF after the appearance of anonymous letters alleging corruption by Le Galo Flores, first reported in this newsletter.

OLAF rejected one of the complaints last year, but is still looking into whether to open a fully fledged inquiry into the other two, according to our sources. And the EESC’s official transmission of information about the letters is also only at the ‘examination’ phase, OLAF confirmed last week. “We are not aware of these allegations and cannot comment on any ongoing cases of OLAF,” an EESC spokesperson said.

If you have information to share, get in touch.

Romania’s government collapse rocks Brussels

Romanian Socialists are under pressure to explain why their party voted with the far-right AUR – part of ECR – to bring down the Romanian government on Tuesday in a no-confidence vote. The Party of European Socialists – which expelled Slovakia’s Smer last year over its coalition with nationalists – limited itself to a statement backing Romania’s social democrats and calling for stability.

The S&D group has been accusing the centre-right in Brussels of siding with the far-right for years. Its leader Iratxe García has said she had assurances the socialists wouldn’t go into government with the far-right.

Romanian Socialist Victor Negrescu called for the rapid formation of a pro-Western government, urging right-wing political forces to return to the negotiating table.

Moment of truth on Turnberry

MEPs and national diplomats will meet tonight to hammer out an EU position on the US trade deal. Some MEPs demand more from the US side, but diplomats want to get the deal done and dusted to avoid provoking Trump further.

Trump threatened to raise tarrifs on EU cars even higher last weekend, accusing Brussels of not complying with the agreement. Yesterday Manfred Weber, the EPP leader, threatened to end negotiations with national diplomats and force the issue to a plenary vote.

EU negotiators are haggling over a ‘sunrise clause’ – which would require the US to first scrap any tariffs that breach the agreement, one EU diplomat said. But they may even downgrade it to a mere non-binding ‘recital.’

The reason Várhelyi will stay

Simple realpolitik could save Olivér Várhelyi’s skin in Brussels. The experienced Hungarian commissioner, one of just six serving a second term, is the subject of incessant rumours that his ties to Fidesz and poor past relationship with Péter Magyar in Brussels make him a sitting duck.

Not only is removing him legally tricky, as we’ve written, but it could open a Pandora’s box for Brussels after other big elections next year in France and Poland. If Várhelyi goes, then so – theoretically – could Maroš Šefčovič, Piotr Serafin, and Teresa Ribera in 2027. More immediately, Marta Kos is under pressure from Janez Janša, who’s poised to return to power after elections in Slovenia.

“Would Stéphane Séjourné be replaced by a far-right figure if Rassemblement National were to win the presidential election?” a Commission source asked. Várhelyi remains focused on his portfolio. He told our Euractiv health conference that nicotine pouches were just as harmful as normal cigarettes.

In other news, the main candidate to be Hungary’s EU ambassador has got another job instead. Martón Hajdu, who was the chief of staff of the Tisza delegation in the European Parliament, was appointed chair of the foreign affairs committee in the Hungarian parliament. We reported he was strongly tipped to become the EU ambassador. But it seems the race to replace Bálint Ódor, whose term will run out in July anyway, is now wide open.

Schuman roundabout

DON’T F*** WITH THE SPP: Olof Gill, one of the two deputy chief Commission spokespeople, told a parliamentary assistant in Strasbourg last week to “Get off fucking Twitter, I’m watching you.” His passing comment was made in the corridors of the European Parliament to James Holland, who works for Luxembourgish MEP Fernand Kartheiser, and has a big following online due to his critical stance on the EU, and pro-Brexit views.

Holland posted on X about the exchange here, without naming the EU official. Gill told Rapporteur the comment was meant as a joke to someone he knew, and accused Holland of humourlessly missing the point. He also demanded Rapporteur did not name him. “I won’t forget it,” he warned. “You’re not going to run a story on this.”

The capitals

🇩🇪BERLIN

Jens Spahn has been re-elected as leader of the conservative CDU/CSU faction in the Bundestag with 86.5%. On the day of the vote, a new poll revealed that Spahn ranked last among Germany’s main politicians – even behind his party colleague Friedrich Merz, who had held the position of least popular top politician last week.– Björn Stritzel

🇸🇮 LJUBLJANA

Janez Janša said centre-right and right-wing parties had agreed the initial framework for a possible fourth Janša government, focused on a leaner state, decentralisation, anti-corruption, energy security, demographic policy and lower administrative burdens. He said the parties now expect around a week of negotiations on the full coalition agreement.– Bronwyn Jones

🇧🇬 SOFIA

Rumen Radev is set to form a government by Friday, pending a mandate and parliamentary vote. President Iliana Yotova held consultations Tuesday, with the first mandate expected Thursday for Progressive Bulgaria, the centre-left populist coalition formed by Radev after resigning in January. For Brussels, the key question is Radev’s stance on Russia and Ukraine, given his calls for dialogue with Moscow.– Konstantin Karadjov

🇸🇪 STOCKHOLM

Opposition lawmakers and Sámi representatives have reacted angrily to plans by Sweden’s centre-right government to remove protections for reindeer herding, in a move aimed at opening up the country’s north to mining and nuclear power. Read more.– Florent Servia

🇪🇸 MADRID

Begoña Gómez, Pedro Sánchez’s wife, testified Tuesday at the European Public Prosecutor’s Office in Madrid over suspected irregularities in an €8 million contract awarded by Red.es to businessman Juan Carlos Barrabés. Prosecutors are examining whether a recommendation letter from Gómez influenced the EU-funded tender, amid a parallel Madrid court probe into alleged corruption and influence peddling.– Inés Fernández-Pontes

🇬🇷 ATHENS

Greece’s ruling New Democracy party has decided to vote against an opposition motion to lift the immunity of two former ministers. The EU prosecutor is investigating their potential involvement in an EU farm subsidies scandal. Read more.– Sarantis Michalopoulos

🇲🇰 SKOPJE

Bekim Sali, the European affairs minister, said the Commission views Skopje as moving faster than other regional partners on its reform agenda. The EU Growth Plan is worth €6bn regionally, but judicial backsliding in Serbia, political instability in Kosovo and slow reform progress in Bosnia could leave space for North Macedonia to benefit, if it meets the required benchmarks.– Bronwyn Jones

Also on Euractiv

Days before incoming Prime Minister Péter Magyar officially takes office, panic appears to be sweeping through the economic elite with close ties to longtime Prime Minister Viktor Orbán’s outgoing administration.

Amid widespread rumours of capital flight and impending wealth taxes, one of the most prominent beneficiaries of the Orbán era broke down in tears on camera, voluntarily surrendering his entire corporate empire to the state in an interview with Kontrol, a YouTube channel owned by Magyar’s brother.

Contributors: Elisa Braun, Pietro Guastamacchia, Sofia Sanchez Manzanaro, Sarantis Michalopoulos

Editors: Eddy Wax, Sofia Mandilara, Charles Szumski