Brussels, 04/05/2012 (Agence Europe) - On Friday 4 May, Androulla Vassiliou announced that, given the current situation in Ukraine and in her capacity as European commissioner for sport, she has decided not to attend the Euro 2012 football tournament in Ukraine. “It would not be appropriate under the current circumstances for me to attend any matches taking place in Ukraine. This view is shared by the president and the other members of the European Commission”, she explained. The day before, the EU delegation in Kiev had stated on Facebook that President Barroso does not intend to go to Ukraine for the Euro 2012 tournament. His position is shared by all European commissioners due to the “untenable” situation of former prime minister Yulia Tymoshenko. Vassiliou underlined that, nonetheless, she believes it is important to “preserve the real essence of sport and the sporting success of Euro 2012”, and trusts she will be able to attend a match in Poland.
On Thursday, Ukraine's Foreign Ministry described as “destructive” the “attempts to politicise sport”. The calls being made to boycott the championship undermine the image of the major sports event and will be detrimental to the enjoyment of thousands of ordinary Ukrainian citizens who are not interested in politics, the Ministry said.
Russia's President Vladimir Putin, for his part, was critical of the European decision. “I consider one should never mix politics, business and other matters of the kind with sport. Sport should be left alone”, he explained, adding that he supports the principle of the International Olympics Committee that sport should be kept separate from politics. He also said he was ready to receive Yulia Tymoshenko in Russia so that she might receive medical care.
On Friday, the spokesman for the German Foreign Ministry, Andreas Peschke, underlined that much is being done to find a solution with Ukraine so that Tymoshenko may receive appropriate treatment for her spinal condition but said finding a solution was a complicated matter and would take some time. (CG/transl.jl)