They use a trick to get around sanctions: More and more Russians are wandering around the Swiss mountains

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Significantly more tourists are traveling to Switzerland from Malta or Cyprus since 2022, as shown by hotel overnight stays. There will be more: From January to October 2023 alone, the number of overnight stays by guests from Cyprus will already exceed that in 2022. However, these are supposed to be Russians, not tourists from Malta or Cyprus.

However, since the start of the war in Ukraine, it has become difficult for Russian guests to travel to Switzerland. The reason is sanctions. But many Russians do not want to miss a trip to the Swiss mountains, especially on January 14, that is, the Russian New Year.

That’s why they apply for a second passport, as “Tages-Anzeiger” writes. Laura Bründler, who has many years of experience as a hotel concierge, observed this. She is also vice president of the Swiss chapter of the international concierge association Les Clefs d’Or.

“Golden passes”

Bründler knows this: “Those who actually have money don’t care about the war, they just took precautions. If the situation requires it, they take the second passport out of the drawer and call their plane. “They don’t really care about the global political situation.” So why do second passports come mainly from Malta and Cyprus?

Both countries issue so-called “golden passports” to wealthy foreigners who invest generously in the country. This seems particularly attractive to wealthy Russians: EU citizenship makes it easier to travel around the world.

However, tourism regions do not want to be informed about this development. A second citizenship is not required. Therefore, it is not possible to determine whether Russians are actually traveling with other passports.

By private jet from another country

The same applies to arrival by private jet: Russian-registered aircraft are prevented from entering Swiss and European airspace due to the Ukrainian conflict. Here too, tourists from Russia are likely to fly to Switzerland with foreign private jet companies from Cyprus, Malta and other countries, an insider told “Tages-Anzeiger”.

Andreas Züllig, former president of the Hotelleriesuisse association, shares this view: “There is no reason for such large numbers of Cypriots and Maltese to suddenly stay overnight in Switzerland – unless they are Russians with passports from these countries.” But this is not fundamentally bad. Because many Russian guests do business in Switzerland and provide high levels of added value. (kae)

Source :Blick