FIFA President's Comments on Lifting Russia's Ban from International Football Competitions Spark Controversy

FIFApresidentGianni Infantino'scomments on ending a ban onRussiafrom competing in internationalfootballcompetitions over itsUkrainecampaign was welcomed by Kremlin, while Kyiv denounced his words as "irresponsible" during the war. Experience a more refined e-paper today It is worth mentioning that Infantino -- who previously had friendly relations with Russian President Vladimir Putin -- had said in an interview that the ban on Russia had "not achieved anything." His words provoked fury in Ukraine, which said the ban should be in place "as long as Russians continue to kill Ukrainians." "We've seen statements from Infantino and we welcome them. It's high time to think about this," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said. "Our footballers, our national team, must have their rights fully restored... We hope that football or later such discussions will take place in FIFA," he added. However, Ukraine's sports minister Matviy Bidnyi called Infantino's comments "irresponsible" and "infantile". "Let me remind you that the Russians have killed more than 650 Ukrainian athletes and coaches during their full-scale aggression," he said on social media on Monday. Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andriy Sybiga said "679 Ukrainian girls and boys will never be able to play football -- Russia killed them." He added: "And it keeps killing more while moral degenerates suggest lifting bans, despite Russia's failure to end its war." Russian ​clubs and the national team have been suspended ‌from FIFA ‌and UEFA competitions since the start ⁠of the war in Ukraine in February 2022. A few Russian athletes in other sports have been allowed to compete again under a neutral flag recently. (with inputs from agencies)