Vladimir Putin bans Boris Johnson from entering Russia

Vladimir Putin has banned Boris Johnson from entering Russia, in a new show of the spiralling diplomatic tensions between the two nations.

Vladimir Putin has banned British Prime Minister Boris Johnson and a raft of senior UK politicians from visiting Russia.

Foreign Secretary Liz Truss, Defence Secretary Ben Wallace, Chancellor Rishi Sunak, Deputy Prime Minister Dominic Raab and Home Secretary Priti Patel have also been put on the Kremlin’s “stop list”, The Sun reports.

Other senior members of the cabinet and a spate of other politicians have also been barred.

First Minister of Scotland, Nicola Sturgeon, and former British Prime Minister Theresa May are amongst the figures on Putin’s hit list.

In all, 13 British government members and politicians will now be prevented from entering Russia.

Russian President Vladimir Putin has banned British Prime Minister Boris Johnson from visiting Russia. Picture: Mikhail Klimentyev/Sputnik/AFP

Mr Johnson is one of 13 British government members and politicians to be put on the Kremlin’s “stop list”. Picture: AFP Photo/Ukrainian Presidential Press Service

“In connection with the unprecedented hostile actions of the British government, expressed, in particular, in the imposition of sanctions against top officials of the Russian Federation, a decision was made to include key members of the British government and a number of political figures in the Russian ‘stop list’,” Moscow said in a statement.

“In essence, the British leadership is deliberately aggravating the situation around Ukraine, pumping the Kyiv regime with lethal weapons and co-ordinating similar efforts on the part of NATO.”

The shock news comes as Putin lashed out at the “hostile” UK sanctions placed on a raft of Russians with links to the Kremlin, following the war in Ukraine.

While the move will be seen as largely symbolic, it is yet another sign of the spiralling diplomatic relations between Moscow and London.

The British government placed a number of sanctions on key allies of Putin, including billionaire Chelsea football club owner Roman Abramovich.

Mr Johnson with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on April 9. Picture: AFP Photo/Ukrainian Presidential Press Service

Abramovich has now had all his UK-based assets seized, meaning he cannot access them or his money.

The sanctions included financial measures designed to damage Russia’s economy and penalise the President.

High-ranking officials and people who have benefited from Putin’s regime were hit the hardest.

Russia’s “stop list” follows the UK’s continued military support of the Ukrainian army, despite warnings from Putin it would be looked upon as a direct attack on Russia.

Kremlin mouthpieces have previously singled out the UK – alongside the US – as being the main agitators against Russia’s attack on Ukraine.

Russia has already barred US President Joe Biden and a string of other officials from entering the country.

And this week, Russia’s main propaganda TV station ramped up threats, with chilling claims “world war three” with NATO has now started.

It also comes as British training has been pivotal in Ukraine’s war with Russia.

In the days before the invasion, Ukrainian soldiers from across the country turned up in droves to receive UK training on NLAWs [next generation light antitank weapons].

The UK has so far given more than 5000 NLAWs to Ukraine forces and shipping over 6000 more.

They have proved invaluable in slowing the Russian advance, British forces have said.

Other weapons provided by Britain include the lethal Starstreak missile system which has been recorded annihilating Russian helicopters.

Footage from April 1 showed an Russian Mi-28N chopper being cut in two as its tail was struck by the laser-guided device travelling at more than three times the speed of sound, sending it plunging to the ground in the Luhansk region.

Russia has since vowed to target British-supplied weapons given to Ukrainians and has accused the UK of escalating the war.

The UK is estimated to have given more than $A793 million in military support to Ukraine since war broke out on February 24.

This article originally appeared on The Sun and was reproduced with permission

Originally published as Vladimir Putin bans Boris Johnson from entering Russia