Ukraine has denied entry to a Russian journalist from Canada who is accredited for covering the presidential election set for 31 March, the spokesman for the State Border Service of Ukraine, Oleh Slobodyan, has said.
According to the Central Electoral Commission, around 800 media representatives have been accredited to cover the presidential election. By 14 March, around 60 of them have arrived in Ukraine, however one was barred from entering.
"He is a Russian national permanently residing in Canada and working for Canadian TV. He was accredited by the Central Electoral Commission but an additional check revealed that he had crossed the administrative border with occupied Crimea illegally," Slobodyan said.
The Russian journalist will not be able to enter Ukraine for three years.
On 8 March, it was reported that Ukraine barred the head of the Ukrainian office of Austrian ORF TV, Christian Wehrschuetz. He is known for his pro-Russian views.