Finland to tighten restrictions on Russian athletes after Moscow's expected return to world ice hockey
on Google
Finland's foreign ministry is preparing new rules to limit the entry of Russian athletes, the Finnish Foreign Minister Elina Valtonen announced on Nov. 6.
Valtonen wrote on social media that the amendments to the current rules are being prepared "on a tight schedule," following a meeting between the Finnish government and President Alexander Stubb.
"Russia must end its war of aggression in Ukraine," Valtonen said.
The announcement comes after the world's top court for sport ruled that Russia must be allowed to return to international ice hockey tournaments, which prompted a firestorm of criticism from many of the countries where the sport is most popular.
Several countries vowed to boycott the Ice Hockey World Championship if Russia returns, and Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney said Russian athletes would not participate in a junior championship set to take place there.
Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha also called for countries to specifically bar the entry of Russian athletes as a means to stop Moscow from being able to participate and thus use sport to whitewash its reputation on the world stage.
Valtonen is one of the EU's strongest advocates for the bloc to impose a total travel ban on Russia, most recently publishing an open letter calling for precisely that in October.
Finland, along with several other EU countries, already stopped issuing tourist visas to Russian citizens after Moscow launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022.
However, Finnish rules still include an exemption allowing for Russian citizens to enter the country for sports contests, explained Finnish foreign ministry official Jussi Tanner in an interview with the newspaper Helsingin Sanomat.
Proposed changes are already being drawn up, Tanner confirmed to Helsingin Sanomat.
Despite Valtonen's advocacy at the EU level, a bloc-wide ban still seems to be some way off.
The EU's top diplomat, Kaja Kallas, said in October that her team would look into new measures to block Russia's return to international sports.
And one EU official told the Kyiv Independent that the European Commission could propose its 22nd sanctions package as soon as Nov. 11, the centerpiece of which they said is set to be restrictions on Russian athletes.
