Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova has said that Russia will introduce a visa regime for citizens of Montenegro in response to Podgorica’s decision to require tourist visas for Russian nationals starting November 1.

Zakharova said Montenegro’s decision would cause “obvious damage” to the country’s interests and “destroy years of achievements in the Russia-Montenegro relations”, ASTRA reports.

She also warned that the introduction of visas could reduce the number of Russian tourists visiting Montenegro, negatively affect local businesses and worsen the country’s investment climate.