Sean Penn and Ben Stiller have been officially and permanently banned from entering Russia as both actors were personally sanctioned by the Russian foreign ministry over their support of Ukraine during the current invasion.
According to Entertainment Weekly, Penn and Stiller have been permanently banned from entering Russia, as are 23 other "members of the US Congress, high-ranking officials, representatives of the business and expert communities, as well as cultural figures." Russia's foreign ministry made the announcement Monday in response to what it calls "the ever-expanding personal sanctions by the G. Biden Administration against Russian citizens."
"The hostile actions of the American authorities, which continue to follow a Russophobic course, destroying bilateral ties and escalating confrontation between Russia and the United States, will continue to be resolutely rebuffed," a statement reads. “Though maybe it has more to do with the fact that Russia is invading Ukraine at the moment and not America's "Russophobic course" that is "destroying bilateral ties" between the two countries. Just a thought.”
Ben Stiller and Sean Penn joined Rob Reiner and Morgan Freeman, both sanctioned in May, on Russia’s growing ban list that also includes President Joe Biden, Vice President Kamala Harris, Attorney General Merrick Garland and more politicians, journalists, intelligence officers and professors. During his time visiting the war-torn country, Penn was witness to the onset of the Ukraine invasion, as he met with Ukraine president Volodymyr Zelenskyy the day before Russian troops started their siege.
He had traveled to Ukraine for a documentary centered around the ongoing invasion. The actor has always been very vocal about his views on politics. In February, he issued the following statement, "Already a brutal mistake of lives taken and hearts broken, and if he doesn't relent, I believe Mr. Putin will have made a most horrible mistake for all of humankind. President Zelensky and the Ukrainian people have risen as historic symbols of courage and principle. Ukraine is the tip of the spear for the democratic embrace of dreams. If we allow it to fight alone, our soul as America is lost."
Sean Penn is the founder of the non-profit CORE (Community Organized Relief Effort), which is currently aiding Ukrainian refugees inhabiting Poland.
Also Read: Sean Penn in Ukraine to film documentary about Russia’s invasion of the country
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