Cronies of Vladimir Putin have been hit with a fresh round of UK travel sanctions on the third anniversary of the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
The Home Office announced a move to widen measures targeting Kremlin-linked elites in a bid to heap more pressure on Russia as the war enters its fourth year.
Local and federal politicians as well as managers or directors of large Russian companies will face exclusion from the UK under the rules, which come on top of existing travel bans on high-profile business figures such as Roman Abramovich.
Security minister Dan Jarvis said the expanded criteria for sanctions would ‘slam the door shut to the oligarchs who have enriched themselves at the expense of the Russian people whilst bankrolling’ the war.
‘My message to Putin’s friends in Moscow is simple: you are not welcome in the UK,’ he said.
Asked whether the Home Office’s new package of sanctions against Russian elites was irrelevant if America did not follow suit, Mr Jarvis told Sky News: ‘It certainly isn’t irrelevant. What it is is a tightening of the screw, applying more pressure to Russia.’
As Ukraine marks three years since the full-scale Russian invasion, Mr Jarvis said ‘the risk, the toll, the burden that has been carried by Ukraine is unsustainable for the long-term’, adding: ‘It is extraordinary that they’ve been able to persevere in the way that they have.’
The Home Office announced a move to widen measures targeting Kremlin-linked elites in a bid to heap more pressure on Russia as the war enters its fourth year.
Local and federal politicians as well as managers or directors of large Russian companies will face exclusion from the UK under the rules, which come on top of existing travel bans on high-profile business figures such as Roman Abramovich.
Security minister Dan Jarvis said the expanded criteria for sanctions would ‘slam the door shut to the oligarchs who have enriched themselves at the expense of the Russian people whilst bankrolling’ the war.
Sir Keir Starmer said the West faces a ‘once-in-a-generation moment’ as world leaders marked the third anniversary of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
The Prime Minister will join a call with leaders including US President Donald Trump, whose overtures to Russia’s Vladimir Putin have alarmed Ukraine’s allies.
The discussion between leaders of the G7 group of wealthy democracies will follow a gathering of Ukraine’s allies in Kyiv, which Sir Keir will address remotely.
On a day of intensive diplomatic activity, Sir Keir said: ‘Three years on from Putin’s barbaric full-scale invasion of Ukraine, we face a once-in-a-generation moment for our collective security and values.
‘We continue to stand with Ukraine for a just and lasting peace.’
France’s Emmanuel Macron is in Washington for talks with Mr Trump ahead of Sir Keir’s own visit to the White House later this week, as European leaders attempt to show a united front in support of Ukraine.
Mr Trump’s talks with Russia, his description of Ukraine’s president Volodymyr Zelensky as a ‘dictator’ and claim that Kyiv started the war have shattered the transatlantic alliance on the issue.
