Barrie-Innisfil MP John Brassard has been blacklisted by the Russian Federation.
Yesterday, the Russian Foreign Ministry released the names of 313 Canadians banned from entering the country.
The black list includes Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, Minister of Foreign Affairs Mélanie Joly and Minister of National Defense Anita Anand, as well as most MPs.
Brassard is number 35 on the list of Canadians banned entry to Russia.
The list was released the same morning that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy talked to Canadian Parliament.
"I’m not so much concerned about being blacklisted as I am about the people of Ukraine," Brassard told InnisfilToday. "President Zelenskyy’s address to Parliament yesterday brought home just how serious the situation is in Ukraine and how much more needs to be done from a military and humanitarian standpoint.
"He called on Canada to do more and we must do more including making it easier for Ukrainians to get visas to Canada as well as work with NATO to provide air protection in the humanitarian corridors. Empty words and promises won’t cut it anymore. That's the message I took from the President's address yesterday. He made what is happening in Ukraine personal for us with his "imagine if Justin" this was Canada's analogy and for me, it was deeply impactful to hear it in those terms."
In addition to Canada’s MPs, the list released by the Russian Foreign Ministry today includes James Temerty, founder of the Temerty Foundation, which is a charity supporting health, humanitarian aid, anti-human trafficking initiatives, education, and life-skills development primarily for children in Ukraine.
Journalist and documentary filmmaker, Marcus Kolga, who is also a leading Canadian expert on Russian and Central and Eastern European issues, has been named on the blacklist. He is also known for spearheading Black Ribbon Day to mark the anniversary of the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact as a Canadian national day of remembrance for the European victims of Nazism and communism.
Board members and donors associated with a memorial to victims of communism (Tribute to Liberty) currently under construction in Ottawa have been included in the list of Canadians banned from Russia.
Members of the Canadian Ukrainian Congress have also been blacklisted.
Canada has sent military supplies to Ukraine, issued sanctions against Russia and closed Canadian airspace to Russian-owned aircraft.
Prior to Zelenskyy’s address to Parliament this morning, Joly announced that Canada is sanctioning another 15 Russian politicians and military leaders.
There are now more than 780 individuals in Russia, Ukraine and Belarus on Canada's sanction list, and 203 entities including banks.
- With files from Maija Hoggett and Natasha Philpott
