Peskov: Reports of Kremlin involvement in violence at Euro Cup are 'Russophobic'
The British newspaper The Guardian reported that riots involving Russian fans in France could have been authorized by the Russian government. According to Interfax, on Sunday, June 19th, the Russian President’s Press Secretary, Dmitry Peskov, said it was “Russophobian hysteria.”
"It does not require any reaction. This is another example of how someone can come to such an extent in his Russophobian hysterics," Peskov said.
Earlier, The Guardian reported that according to high-level sources in the British government, Russian fans who participated in the riots at the European Football Championship in France (Euro 2016) could have been supported by the Kremlin. The publication claimed that a significant number of fans were representatives of Russian "security forces.” Its sources in the government said that the actions of Russian "hooligans" in France could be part of a "hybrid war.”
Britain's Euro 2016 police chief Mark Roberts said that the current attacks were "the most serious and coordinated among all that he had seen in the past 10 years." In addition, the British police officers saw 150 Russian fans equipped with mouth guards, fingerless gloves and bandanas.
On Saturday, June 11th, conflict erupted between the fans of the two countries before the start of the Russia-England match in Marseille. More than 30 people were injured in the riots. After the end of the match at the Velodrome stadium about 30 Russian fans broke through a cordon of stewards, entered the English fan section and started a fight.
On June 16th, the court in France sentenced three Russian fans to prison for participating in the riots in Marseille. Alexei Yerunov, a supporter’s liaison officer for FC Moscow Lokomotiv, was sentenced to two years' imprisonment. Sergei Gorbachev, the Executive Director of the fan club of the Tula "Arsenal", was sentenced to 1.5 years, and Nikolai Morozov, a “Dynamo” fan was sentenced to a year in prison.