MOSCOW: Russia’s foreign ministry said on Friday it had significantly expanded a list of European Union officials and politicians banned from entering Russia in response to the latest round of sanctions by the bloc.

EU member states approved a 13th package of Ukraine-related sanctions against Russia on Wednesday, banning nearly 200 entities and individuals accused of helping Moscow procure weapons or of involvement in kidnapping Ukrainian children, something Moscow denies.

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“The European Union is continuing its fruitless attempts to put pressure on Russia through unilateral restrictive measures,” the Russian foreign ministry said in a statement.