Senior UK lawmaker says he's proud to be sanctioned by Russia

LONDON - Senior British lawmaker Mark Harper said on Wednesday he welcomed Russia's move to impose personal restrictions on members of the UK's House of Commons, saying he was proud to be on the list.

Russia earlier on Wednesday imposed personal restrictions on 287 British members of parliament and banned them from entering the country, accusing them of fuelling "unwarranted Russophobic hysteria", the foreign ministry said in a statement.

"Proud to be on this list with many of my colleagues in the House of Commons," Harper said on Twitter. "Russia really hates being called out for their illegal invasion of Ukraine and disgraceful war crimes."