White House press secretary Jen Psaki pointed out that the Russian sanctions list named “Joseph Robinette Biden” where it should have said “Joseph Robinette Biden Jr”.

“President Biden is a ‘junior’, so they may have sanctioned his dad – may he rest in peace,” she told reporters on Tuesday.

Ms Psaki added: “None of us are planning tourist trips to Russia, none of us have bank accounts that we won’t be able to access, so we will forge ahead.”

Russia imposed sanctions on a range of prominent US politicians in retaliation for US and EU sanctions on the Russian economy.