B.C. Premier John Horgan said Thursday that visiting Russia is no longer on his bucket list and being listed among those banned by the government of Vladimir Putin is an honour.

B.C. Premier John Horgan said Thursday that visiting Russia is no longer on his bucket list and being listed among those banned by the government of Vladimir Putin is an honour.

Western sanctions aimed at the Putin regime since its invasion of Ukraine have targeted individuals, and the Russian government has responded in kind. Horgan was among more than 60 people named by Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov in the latest round of sanctions Thursday.

“I consider that a badge of honour, not for myself but for British Columbia,” Horgan told reporters at the legislature April 21. “The fact that we were able to catch the attention of a brutal dictator in the middle of an illegal invasion of a neighbour tells me that British Columbians stood up immediately and said we’re going to boycott Russian products, we’re going to stand up and open our hearts and our homes to the Ukrainian people.

“If the Russians don’t want me to visit, I had no plans to go. But I guess I’ll scratch that off my list of things to do. No longer on the bucket list, if it ever was.”