Kathmandu,

July 24,

The Japanese government is expected to bar Russian President Vladimir Putin from attending the state funeral of former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, if he desires to do so, the news agency Nikkei reported. Abe, Japan’s longest-serving PM, was assassinated earlier this month.

The Japanese government is considering refusing Putin’s participation because his entry to the Asian country has been effectively banned following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the newspaper said in its Saturday edition.

It’s unlikely, however, that the Russian leader wants to attend the event, a senior Japanese government official was quoted in the report as saying.