The incident at the Gramsci plant, EU ministers meet on August 31 in Prague. Will Russian tourists be allowed to enter the block?

Albanian police formally charged two Russians and a Ukrainian with espionage on Sunday after they were arrested for trying to enter a restricted military zone and then spraying military guards with a nerve-paralyzing spray.

Earlier in the day, four people of Czech nationality were arrested for entering a defunct military factory in Poličan in the south of the country.

The incidents come after an ongoing dilemma among EU countries over whether to impose a ban on Russian tourists entering the bloc.

How did the event happen?

The incident with the Russian and Ukrainian citizens took place at the Gramsci military plant on Saturday. After being spotted around the perimeter of the defunct plant, now a weapons storage and dismantling facility, they were spotted by guards. One suspect turned on the officers and sprayed them with a substance that caused temporary blindness, but eventually, all three were arrested.

According to police, they have been charged with two counts of espionage and items seized as evidence include laptops, drones, cellphones and a reported spying device disguised as a camera.

It is learned that the persons had entered Albania as tourists since Russian citizens do not need a visa during the summer months. Moreover, it is believed that they had been photographing the place for several days before the incident.

The Albanian authorities have asked the Russian and Ukrainian embassies in Tirana to provide detailed information about the citizens involved.

The incident, which made headlines around the world, was quickly followed by another, this time at a missing military factor in Poliçan, where police arrested four Czech nationals.

The Ministry of Defense said that the security forces are carrying out the procedures and verifications related to the event.

According to media reports, the Czech nationals claim to be lost tourists.

"We are tourists; we took pictures, lost our way and entered the tunnel. We have no bad intentions", they claim, according to their testimony published in the local media.

The Poliçan factory was established in 1962 to produce Kalashnikovs, 82 mm ammunition, grenades and anti-personnel mines during the communist era and is currently inactive.

Ndalimi i rusëve

Incidentet e sigurisë që përfshijnë shtetas të huaj që pretendojnë se janë turistë vijnë mes një qëndrimi të ndarë të vendeve të BE-së nëse duhet të ndalojnë hyrjen e turistëve rusë në bllok, shkruan Euractiv. 

Letonia, Lituania dhe Polonia ndaluan lëshimin e vizave të reja turistike menjëherë pas pushtimit të Ukrainës nga Kremlini. Finlanda njoftoi javën e kaluar se do të zvogëlojë përpunimin e vizave në vetëm 10% të rasteve të mëparshme të trajtuara në ditë. Vendet e tjera të BE-së, përfshirë Gjermaninë dhe Portugalinë, mbeten më të kujdesshëm.

Ukraina po i bën presion BE-së që të ndalojë hyrjen e turistëve rusë në bllok, por ka hasur në reagime të ndryshme.

The issue will be discussed at a meeting of EU foreign ministers in Prague on August 31, as the 27-nation dp bloc decides whether to come up with a unified stance on short-term visas for ordinary Russians.

The latest incidents occurred at a time when Russian ships are conducting a series of maneuvers in the Adriatic Sea. According to naval radar data and an interview in La Repubblica with Chief of Defense Staff Admiral Cavo Dragone, three different Russian units entered the area last week.

They include the destroyer Admiral Tributus, the intelligence ship Nikitic Tatishchev and the cruiser Varyag. The frigate Admiral Grigorovich has operated in the Ionian Sea.

The Italian Navy deployed various units by land and air to closely follow the Russian ships. On Saturday, all the teams had left the Adriatic and were in Ion.