Wants EU to impose sporting events sanction on Moscow over shooting of Malaysian Airlines flight MH17
British Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg joined calls on Sunday for Russia to be stripped of the World Cup in 2018 following the shooting down of Malaysian Airlines Flight MH17 over the Russia-Ukraine border.
The Liberal Democrat leader, whose party is the junior partner in Conservative Prime Minister David Cameron’s coalition government, said sporting events should be part of a new package of European Union (EU) sanctions against Moscow.
Speaking to a foreign news outfit, Clegg said, “You can’t have this—the beautiful game—marred by the ugly aggression of Russia on the Russian Ukrainian border.”
“Not only would (Russian President) Vladimir Putin exploit it, I think it would make the rest of the world look so weak and insincere about our protestations about Putin’s behaviour if we’re not prepared to pull the plug.”
Clegg said that Putin cannot “constantly push the patience of the international community beyond breaking point”, destabilise a neighbouring country, protect these armed separatists in the east of Ukraine and still have the privilege and honour of receiving all the accolades in 2018 for being the host nation of the World Cup.
Clegg’s call echoes that of several German politicians earlier this month, although the idea was quickly rejected by football officials.
FIFA executive committee member and German football body DFB former president Theo Zwanziger reportedly said, “Sports boycotts have rarely achieved anything, and that’s why I think nothing of such a proposal.”
The EU on Saturday agreed to new sanctions on Russia’s intelligence chiefs, as it hardens its attitude to Moscow following the crash of flight MH17.
The EU and United States accuse rebels of shooting down the Malaysian Airlines plane on July 17, killing all 298 people on board, using a missile from Russia.
