Russia bans 500 Americans from the country over sanctions, including Obama

Russia on Friday published a list of 500 Americans it has barred from the country in response to sanctions from the western powers over its ongoing invasion of Ukraine.

"In response to the regularly imposed anti-Russian sanctions by the [Joe] Biden administration, which, according to Washington’s plan, are designed to inflict maximum damage on Russia by personally affecting officials and ordinary citizens of our country, as a countermeasure, entry into the Russian Federation is closed for 500 Americans," reads a statement from the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

The list mostly includes political leaders and media personalities such as CNN's Erin Burnett, MSNBC's Joe Scarborough, and comedian Stephen Colbert. State officials from both parties, including Maryland Gov. Wes Moore, D, and Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger, R, also made the list.

Also among the 500 are active administration officials whom the ministry says facilitate "the spread of Russophobic attitudes and fakes, as well as the heads of military-industrial complex companies that supply weapons to the regime in Kiev."

"It is high time for Washington to learn that not a single hostile attack against Russia will be left without a strong reaction," the Russians asserted. "The principle of the inevitability of punishment will be consistently applied, whether we are talking about tougher sanctions pressure or discriminatory steps to hinder the professional activities of our fellow citizens."

The ministry also repeated its denial to the US Embassy in Moscow of a requested visit with imprisoned reporter Evan Gershkovich. 

Ben Whedon is an editor and reporter for Just the News. Follow him on Twitter.