Estonia bans Russian Patriarch Kirill from entering the country

Estonia has issued an entry ban against the head of the Russian Orthodox Church, Patriarch Kirill.

The patriarch, who is considered a sympathiser of Russian President Vladimir Putin, joins a new list of 58 people who are no longer allowed to enter the country.

According to the Foreign Ministry in Tallinn on Friday, the persons barred from entry were complicit or involved in serious human rights violations.

Other people were declared undesirables because of the arrest and conviction of Kremlin opponent Vladimir Kara-Mursa, who was imprisoned in Russia.

In April, Kara-Mursa, who belongs to the opposition, was sentenced to 25 years in a prison camp with particularly harsh prison conditions.

"Patriarch Kirill is one of the biggest supporters and advocates of Putin's ideology," Estonia's Foreign Minister Margus Tsahkna said, explaining the decision.

"He has justified and promoted the war against Ukraine."

The head of the church is internationally regarded as an avid supporter of the war in Ukraine ordered by Putin - and has repeatedly defended it in the past, including in sermons.