Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs bans entry to a group of Japanese journalists and researchers

The Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs has announced an indefinite ban on entry to a group of Japanese citizens in response to continued sanctions by Tokyo related to Russia’s special military operation in Ukraine. This was stated in a statement by the department. The blacklist includes over 30 individuals, including representatives from leading Japanese media outlets such as Nikkei, Asahi, Yomiuri, TBS, and Fuji TV, as well as employees of Japan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs and professors from several universities, including the University of Tokyo, Keio University, and Hitotsubashi University. Mentioned in the statement are the chairperson of the Free Tibet Fukuoka NPO Yoko Isii, Keio University professor Takashi Hirano, and the official representative of Japan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs Toshihiro Kitamura. On October 24th, Kremlin representative Dmitry Peskov stated that Tokyo currently holds a very unfriendly position towards Moscow. The Kremlin representative pointed out that Japan has joined all illegal sanctions against Russia.