The declaration’s 35 signatories include 25 European Union countries as well as the United Kingdom, United States, Canada, New Zealand, South Korea, Japan, Norway, Iceland and Liechtenstein.

Full text of the statement on the Russian-Ukrainian war and international sport:

On Friday, February 10, there was a meeting of ministers and senior representatives from our common group of nations. We were honored to be joined by President Zelensky, who presented the ongoing process of destruction of Ukraine, including its sports infrastructure and its players, caused by the self-determined, unprovoked and unjustified war of the Russia with Ukraine, facilitated by the Belarusian government. We reiterated our two previous joint statements of March 8, 2022 and July 4, 2022, and discussed the International Olympic Committee (IOC) statement of January 25, 2023.

We welcomed the confirmation and strengthening of existing sanctions by the IOC, as well as a statement of solidarity and support for Ukrainian athletes and the Ukrainian Olympic Committee.

Recognizing the independence of sports bodies, but bearing in mind the ongoing attack on Ukraine and the resulting devastation, we noted that the IOC’s proposal to explore the possibility of readmitting Russian and Belarusian athletes to competition raises a number of questions and concerns.

In its statement of February 28, 2022. The IOC recommended that Russian or Belarusian athletes not participate in the competition, in part because “many Ukrainian athletes do not have this opportunity” [udziału w imprezach sportowych] because of an attack on their country.” In cases where such short-term exclusion was impossible for organizational or legal reasons, the IOC has recommended that citizens of Russia and Belarus only be allowed to participate in competitions. as neutral players, without the possibility of displaying the emblems, national colors and flags of their countries and playing their anthems.

We have noted that the situation on the ground in Ukraine has only deteriorated since the release of that statement. We are deeply convinced that in the absence of any change in the situation regarding Russian aggression against Ukraine, and in the name of justice and solidarity with the Ukrainian athletes whose sports facilities have been destroyed and who have had to leave their country (or stay put to fight for Ukraine, many of whom lost their lives), there is no practical reason to derogate from the rule of exclusion of Russian and Belarusian athletes as stated by the IOC in its statement of February 28, 2022.

We also found that through its choices, actions and continued attacks, Russia has violated the principles of the Olympic Truce, which have been consistently upheld by the IOC and the UN General Assembly since 1993.

In our joint statement of July 4, 2022, we recognized, bearing in mind the principle of non-discrimination, that citizens of Russia and Belarus may be admitted to sports competition as “neutral” persons, provided that it is clearly assured that they do not represent their country. In Russia and Belarus, however, sports and politics are closely linked. We have serious concerns about the ability of Russian and Belarusian Olympic athletes to compete as “neutral” athletes under the IOC’s non-national identification terms, when they are directly funded and supported by their respective countries. (unlike, for example, professional tennis players). The close ties of Russian players and their affiliation with the Russian military are also clearly worrying. Therefore, our common approach has never been to discriminate solely on the basis of nationality, and the serious concerns identified must be addressed by the IOC.

Until these fundamental issues are resolved, the significant lack of clarity is eliminated, and a workable “neutrality” model is defined in detail, we will not agree that Russian players and Belarusians are allowed to compete again. Noting the position of the IOC that no final decision has yet been made, we urge the IOC to consider the points raised by all countries and reconsider its proposal in this light. We also note that it is in the hands of Russia and Belarus that it is possible to pave the way for their athletes to fully return to the international sports community by ending the war that these countries have started.