Yahoo TV

STORY: Finland announced on Tuesday (August 16) that it will reduce the number of visas issued to Russians from September 1, cutting daily visa application appointments in Russia from 1,000 to 500 per day, with just 100 allocated to tourists.

With European airspace shut to Russians, many have been traveling through bordering Baltic countries and Finland in order to fly to other parts of Europe on Schengen visas. The visas allow 90 days of travel within the 26-country, border-free Schengen Area.

The Finnish government agreed on Tuesday to curtail their numbers, after Russian tourists begun using Finland's Helsinki-Vantaa airport as a gateway to European holiday destinations following Russia's lifting of pandemic-related border restrictions a month ago.

Neighbouring Estonia will this week close its border to more than 50,000 Russians with previously issued visas, the first country in the European Union to do so, making it harder for ordinary Russians to enter EU.