Sri Lankan President Ranil Wickremesinghe has ordered an investigation after the country’s Immigration Department issued a confusing notice without cabinet approval about suspending visas for Russians and Ukrainians.
“The Sri Lankan government has not officially taken a decision to cancel the extension of visas previously provided to tourists,” the presidential office said in a statement.
The Department of Immigration and Emigration recently issued a notice granting a period of 14 days from February 23 for all Russian and Ukrainian tourists to leave the country, according to the Sunday Islands news portal.
The announcement comes after the Russian Embassy in Colombo condemned this Sunday the holding of an event in a bar by Russian citizens in the coastal city of Unawatuna in which they were asked to attend with a “white” dress code. .
“We urge all our citizens who remain on the island with a tourist visa or have permanent residence to strictly follow the laws of Sri Lanka and respect its customs,” it said in a statement, adding that Russia “strongly condemns all forms of racial discrimination”.
