British politician says Russia shouldn't be allowed to host World Cup
The former Deputy Prime Minister of Great Britain, Nick Clegg, believes that Russia should forfeit the right to host the 2018 World Cup.
“It might be a silly thing. It is ludicrous that Russia is going to hold the World Cup in 2018. What world are we in? That they basically abuse people’s human rights on that scale, barbarism in Aleppo, and we will prepare to play football in Moscow in 2018? I think if FIFA had any moral mettle to it at all, it will now say that Russia has forfeited any right to host any international tournament. I’m calling for FIFA to cancel Russia – if they don’t, if Russia is behaving like this, of course we shouldn’t turn up,” Clegg stated on ITV.
Clegg added that he believes that it should have been done two years ago.
Last week, Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs Boris Johnson said Russia’s airstrikes on Syrian territory were war crimes.
According to him, London is considering a range of options to put pressure on Moscow in order to change its position regarding the Syrian conflict. A boycott of the 2018 World Cup is among those options.
“The single most potent weapon we have is shame,” Johnson noted.