“In our contacts with the British embassy in Moscow and through ours in London we stated that any hostile step regarding visas will inevitably provoke a symmetrical response,” the official told the Sputnik news agency.

“This applies equally to representatives of the British media, whose journalist accreditation has been withdrawn more than once and entry to Russia has been banned,” Belyaev said.

“Getting a British visa is currently an extremely difficult, if not impossible, task for Russian citizens,” he regreted. “These are not only tourists, but also Russians who work under contract in the United Kingdom or cases of reunification and family visits.”

The British side, he added, often claims the large number of applications from Ukrainian nationals that are an unconditional priority now.

“We demand that British officials not discriminate against the rights of Russian citizens for political reasons,” he stressed.

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