MINSK, Belarus -- Ukraine has banned action film actor Steven Seagal from entering the country for five years.

Seagal, an American, was given Russian citizenship by President Vladimir Putin last year in a ceremony shown on state television. He has vocally defended the Russian leader's policies and criticized the U.S. government.

A statement from the Ukrainian Security Service on Friday said Seagal's entry was banned "on the basis of Ukrainian national security." It did not elaborate.

Russian President Vladimir Putin, right, speaks with US actor Steven Seagal, left, at the Russian Black Sea resort of Sochi on August 11, 2012. AFP/Getty Images

Seagal also reportedly has spoken in favor of Russia's 2014 annexation of the Crimean Peninsula from Ukraine. That same year, Putin enlisted Seagal to preach physical fitness and to sell his vision, CBS News correspondent Elizabeth Palmer reports.

Get Breaking News Delivered to Your Inbox

"I know him well enough to know that he is one of the greatest world leaders, if not the greatest world leader, alive today," Seagal said of Putin at the time. "He cares more about Russia than anybody I know. And he's not afraid to get up and do what needs to be done."