turkish football player, Aykut Demirexpresses the reasons for the reluctance to participate in solidarity with Ukraine.
In a match in Turkey, Erzurumspor vs Ankaragucu in the second division, the majority of the players from both teams before the match wore T-shirts that read ‘Savasa Hayir No War’ which refers to the rejection of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Unlike his colleagues, Demir decided to keep wearing the jersey as usual.
The defender for the Erzurumspor club, who has experienced matches with the Turkish national team, considers events in Ukraine the same as in the Middle East which many people ignore.
“Thousands of people die every day in the Middle East. I feel sad too. I feel the sadness of these innocent people.”
“Those who ignore the persecution there [Timur Tengah] now do something like this [aksi solidaritas] when it happened in Europe. I don’t want to wear those shirts because they’re not aimed at those countries [Timur Tengah],” Iron on the floor.
Since Russia invaded Ukraine, solidarity actions have been shown by various parties, including in the world of football. Support for Ukraine flows and it can be seen in various European competitions that were held last week.
FIFA and UEFA itself have taken decisive action for Russia. They have now imposed sanctions banning the Russian national team and Russian clubs from participating in international competitions.
Thus, the Russian national team will not be able to compete in the World Cup play-offs. Initially, Russia was scheduled to face Poland.
FIFA’s move has not only sparked a reaction of support, there are also those who view that the world’s highest football body is imposing double standards on Russia and Israel.
(nva/nva)
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