UK imposes sanctions on Russian children's commissioner accused of forced adoptions

Sanctions also target Vladimir Putin’s allies, military commanders, and Russian and Myanmar arms dealers

Russian President Vladimir Putin meets with Commissioner for Children's Rights Maria Lvova-Belova at the Kremlin. AFP

Britain has announced a fresh wave of sanctions against Russia, aimed at people it claimed were involved with the “barbaric treatment of children in Ukraine”.

Those who have been sanctioned include Russian children’s rights commissioner Maria Lvova-Belova, for allegedly orchestrating the forced transfer and adoption in Russia of 2,000 Ukrainian children violently taken from the Luhansk and Donetsk regions.

Each has been dealt an asset freeze preventing them from dealing with British banks or businesses, and a ban on flying to the UK.

Foreign Secretary Liz Truss said: “Today we are targeting the enablers and perpetrators of [Vladimir] Putin’s war who have brought untold suffering to Ukraine, including the forced transfer and adoption of children.

“We will not tire of defending freedom and democracy, and keeping up the pressure on Putin, until Ukraine succeeds.”

The Foreign Office said that in her role as Commissioner for Children’s Rights, Ms Lvova-Belova was responsible for undermining and threatening the territorial integrity, sovereignty and independence of Ukraine. Specifically, the Ukrainian foreign ministry has accused her of orchestrating the forced abduction and adoption of Ukrainian children in Russia.

Ukraine's war with Russia — in pictures

Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi, left, and French President Emmanuel Macron visit Irpin, outside Kyiv, and survey damage following Russia's invasion. AP

Ukrainian troops fire with a French self-propelled Caesar howitzer towards Russian positions at a front line in the eastern region of Donbas. AFP

Workers pour molten steel into a mould at a foundry in Berdyansk, Zaporizhzhia region, in an area under Russian military control. AP

Russian soldiers guard an area next to a field of wheat in the Zaporizhzhia region. AP

A US Marine Corps Harrier fighter jet is parked on board the assault ship USS Kearsarge, during the Baltops 22 exercise in the Baltic Sea. Reuters

A man picks up debris after his house was destroyed by shelling in the city of Dobropillia, Donbas region. AFP

Smoke rises after shelling in Ukraine's breakaway enclave of Donetsk. AFP

A mascot is wrapped in the colours of the Ukrainian flag before the country's Uefa Nations League football match against the Republic of Ireland in Lodz, Poland. Reuters

Russian soldiers walk near a monument at the entrance of Mariupol, which has been painted in the colours of the Russian flag. AFP

French troops at an air base in Constanta, Romania. French President Emmanuel Macron is expected to visit the base in a show of support for Nato and European allies following Russia's invasion of Ukraine. AP

Svitlana Nazarenko, sister of Mykhailo Tereshchenko, is comforted by her son during her brother's funeral in Kyiv. The Ukrainian soldier was killed in the Donbas region. Getty

Russian troops demine the bay and beach of Mariupol, Ukraine. AFP

A Russian soldier inspects the Azovstal steel plant, in Mariupol, in territory which is under control of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People's Republic. AP

A house heavily damaged by Russian shelling is seen through a broken window, in the town of Bakhmut, Donetsk region. AP

Maryna Golovnia sits in a van with her children as they leave their home in Bakhmut, amid fighting. Getty Images

Ballet dancer Mykyta Sukhorukov rehearses before the evening Gala Concert of the Ukrainian National Ballet, in Kosice, Slovakia. Getty Images

A Ukrainian soldier looks on from inside a tank at a position in the breakaway Donetsk enclave, as Russia's attack on Ukraine continues. Reuters

Boys play on top of a damaged Russian tank in Kyiv. EPA

An Orthodox priest blesses Ukrainian soldiers during a service at a church in the Eastern Ukrainian city of Kharkiv. EPA

A damaged Ukrainian navy ship, the 'Donbas', lies partially submerged near the pier in the port city of Mariupol. EPA

Ukrainian soldiers load a projectile into a tank near the small city of Svitlodarsk, in the breakaway Ukrainian enclave of Donetsk. EPA

Smoke rises after the Russian military struck a compound at the Azot Chemical Plant in Lysychansk, Ukraine. Reuters

A Russian serviceman on patrol outside the Ukrainian town of Schastia. AFP

Mourners gather during the funeral of Ukrainian serviceman Ruslan Skalskyi in Lviv. AFP

Civilians are evacuated from Lysychansk, in the eastern Donbas region of Ukraine. AFP

A man passes two destroyed military lorries in Lysychansk. AFP

Ukrainian soldiers run for cover during clashes with Russian troops in Lysychansk. AFP

An elderly woman reacts as Ukrainian soldiers lead her to safety during a battle with Russian troops in Lysychansk. AFP

A wounded woman is assisted by Ukrainian soldiers in Lysychansk. AFP

A house burns after being shelled in Lysychansk. AFP

A Ukrainian serviceman speaks on a radio at a front line in the Donbas region. AFP

A man walks next to a damaged building in Lysychansk. Reuters

A man with children rides a bicycle along an empty street, as smoke rises after Russian shelling in Lysychansk. Reuters

An unexploded shell is stuck in the ground in Lysychansk. euters

An elderly woman, who was evacuated from the Lysychansk area, cries moments before travelling by train to western Ukraine from Pokrovsk railway station. AP

Patriarch Kirill, the head of the Russian Orthodox Church, was also sanctioned for his support and endorsement for the war in Ukraine.

Ms Truss said Mr Kirill has “repeatedly abused his position to justify the war” and will be sanctioned alongside other “collaborators”.

She told the House of Commons: “Sanctions must be kept in place while Russian boots are on Ukrainian soil. And we must keep increasing the pressure.”

The Russian Orthodox Church dismissed the sanctions against its leader.

"Attempts to intimidate the primate of the Russian Church with something or to force him to renounce his views are senseless, absurd and unpromising," church spokesman Vladimir Legoyda said on Telegram.

"The church - now especially - is the last bridge, a means of communication, which they are trying to destroy for some reason," Mr Legoyda said.

"This may be necessary only for those political forces that have the escalation of conflict and the alienation of peace as their important goal," he added.

Russian Orthodox Patriarch Kirill serves during an Orthodox Easter service in Moscow. AFP

A foreign office statement said: “Putin’s aggression reaches beyond Ukraine, with Russian exports fuelling conflict across the globe. New sanctions today hit organisations responsible for supplying aircraft parts to the Myanmar Armed Forces.

“These new sanctions will limit Myanmar’s military Junta — who are heavily reliant on Russian air assets — and cut Putin off from profiting from sales that fund his war machine."

Other new sanctions target Mr Putin’s allies and military commanders.

They include:

· Sergey Savostyanov, the deputy of the Moscow city Duma and member of Mr Putin’s political elite, was sanctioned for publicly supporting the war.

· Alexey Isaykin, president and board member of Volga-Dnepr Group, a Russian transport company with significant air operations that is contracted by the Russian government to create air bridges that carry critical goods.

· Four military colonels from the 64th Separate Motorised Rifle Brigade — a unit which allegedly killed, raped, and tortured civilians in Bucha — have also been sanctioned.

· Members of the so-called “Salvation Committee for Peace and Order” — an organisation accused of collaborating with the Russian army to support the occupation of the Kherson Oblast.