European Union (EU) foreign ministers are likely to agree to suspend a visa facilitation agreement with Moscow and make Russians wait longer and pay more for their visas, diplomats said on Tuesday, while the bloc remained split over an outright EU travel ban, Reuters reported.

Germany and France warned it would be counterproductive to ban ordinary Russians, a move advocated by Kyiv in response to Russia's invasion and backed by some EU members, and the agreement's suspension was a compromise that could be reached at the ministers' two-day meeting in Prague.

German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock argued in favor of not going further. "It is crucial not to punish dissidents who are trying to leave Russia," she said.

Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba swiftly rejected the argument that travelling to the West could change the Russians' minds, saying Moscow fought a brief war with Georgia and annexed Crimea since securing easier EU visas in 2007.

Eastern and Nordic countries strongly back a tourist visa ban and some said they could go for a regional one if there was no agreement at EU level.

Finland, which has a long land border with Russia and says it does not want to become a hub for Russian tourists entering the EU, has sharply cut the number of visas it grants them.

Earlier this month, Estonia closed its border to more than 50,000 Russians with previously issued visas, the first EU country to do so.