The wife of pro-Putin figure Petrosyan was refused a visa to Italy because of her support for the war in Ukraine

Tetyana Brukhunova, 37, the fifth wife of Russian comedian Yevgeny Petrosyan, has been refused an Italian visa. According to her, this is the first time this has happened in 13 years of travelling around Europe. Brukhunova had planned to travel to Milan for Fashion Week, but instead of a visa, she was handed back her blank passport with no explanation as to why her application had been refused. “I was, of course, very upset. No reasons given, no explanations. They simply returned my passport blank,” she complained on social media. Bruhunova later stated that she believes the refusal is linked to her name being listed on the Ukrainian “Myrotvorets” database. On the centre’s website, she is accused, among other things, of propagating Russia’s war against Ukraine, supporting Russian aggression and glorifying Russian military personnel. Bruhunova herself makes no secret of her support for Russia and stated that being included in the ‘Mirotvorets’ database does not frighten her. “99.9 per cent of well-known people in Russia, the country’s patriots, are on that list. So I can confidently say that I am proud of this,” she said. According to Brukhunova, she now supposedly understands why she was refused an Italian visa. At the same time, she assured that she is not upset about it and plans to travel to other countries. However, the mere fact that a person is listed in the ‘Myrotvorets’ database does not automatically constitute legal grounds for refusing a Schengen visa: the final decision on whether to grant a visa is taken by the consular authorities in accordance with the applicable rules and the results of the applicant’s vetting.