(Reuters) – U.S. tech giant Apple has suspended its Apple Pay service for Russia’s Mir card payment system, Russia’s largest lender and payments system said on Friday, closing a loophole that had allowed Russians to keep using the service. Apple Inc restricted the use of Apple Pay, which began operating in Russia in 2016, on March 1 in the wake of Russia’s decision to send tens of thousands of troops into Ukraine on Feb. 24, preventing Russian Mastercard and Visa cardholders using the service. But Russia’s home-grown system, Mir, remained connected to Apple Pay until that access was removed on…