Russia bans actors Ben Stiller and Sean Penn as part of new round of sanctions
- Russia is banning Ben Stiller, Sean Penn, and 23 other Americans from entering its country.
- The new round of sanctions also named several US senators, including Pat Toomey and Kyrsten Sinema.
Russia is banning actors Sean Penn, Ben Stiller, and 23 other Americans from entering its country as part of a new round of sanctions, the Russian Foreign Ministry wrote on its website.
The list of newly sanctioned US citizens also included a group of US politicians and think-tank leaders, including Democratic and Republican Sens. Pat Toomey, Kyrsten Sinema, Rick Scott, Mike Rounds, Kevin Cramer, and Mark Kelly.
The move comes as a response to US President Joe Biden's sanctions against Russian citizens, the press release said. The Russian Foreign Ministry did not specify why it selected the 25 individuals that it included in its list.
Both Stiller and Penn have been supporters of Ukraine's cause in its ongoing conflict with Russia.
In June, Ukraine's Ministry of Defense thanked in a tweet Stiller, Penn, and actors Liev Schreiber and Angelina Jolie for visiting its country "despite the danger."
Stiller met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on June 20, calling the leader (and former actor) his hero.
Penn, who is working on a documentary about how the Donbas region of Ukraine has been affected by the conflict with Russia, also met with Zelensky earlier this year. In a CNN interview, he described Zelensky's leadership as "new to the modern world in terms of courage and dignity and love."