This is a copy of the letter that the Ukrainian Football Association, the National Olympic Committee of Ukraine, and the Ministry of Youth and Sports of Ukraine jointly sent to FIFA and UEFA.

Dear President Infantino, Dear President Cherif,

On behalf of the National Olympic Committee of Ukraine, the Ministry of Youth and Sports of Ukraine, and the Ukrainian Football Association, we express our respect to you and, considering the urgent circumstances, consider it necessary to draw your attention to the following.

On May 7, 2026, at its meeting, the IOC Executive Board adopted a decision regarding the full restoration of Belarusian athletes' participation in international competitions under their national flag, anthem, and symbols, as well as touched upon the issue of the possible return to international competitions for Russian athletes.

This happened at a time when, with great regret, over four years into the full-scale war, Russia, in support of Belarus, has destroyed thousands of lives and homes, including hundreds of sports facilities, and more than 600 Ukrainian athletes, coaches, and officials, and continues to do so every day without showing signs of a desire for peace. Moreover, the Russian Football Union has been deliberately and systematically violating international law and UEFA decisions from 2014 regarding the impermissibility of integrating clubs from temporarily occupied territories into internal Russian competitions.

It is worth noting separately that Belarus has been and remains recognized by the European Parliament, PACE, and the UN as a co-belligerent in the war from the very beginning of the full-scale invasion in February 2022. It continues to support Russia's military aggression against Ukraine and facilitate the occupation of Ukrainian territories, and recently even intensifies its aggressive rhetoric in official public communications. Belarusian territory is consistently used for launching rockets and strike drones at Ukrainian cities, as well as for military logistics and support for the Russian army, conducting military exercises whose main purpose is to create tension and pressure not only on Ukraine but also on neighboring European countries. Moreover, recently joint nuclear training with Russia has been held in Belarus, which is an even more unacceptable and alarming gesture for the European and world community, going beyond a local threat to Eastern and Central Europe.

At the same time, the current UN General Assembly Resolution ES-11/4 "Territorial Integrity of Ukraine: Protection of Principles of the United Nations Charter" confirms internationally recognized borders of Ukraine and calls for not recognizing any attempts to change the status of temporarily occupied territories in Ukraine.

As FIFA and UEFA did, in February 2022, the International Olympic Committee also reacted to the military aggression against Ukraine and adopted a corresponding decision regarding the exclusion of both Russian and Belarusian athletes, and in October 2023 – a decision on excluding the Russian Olympic Committee (ROC) due to the violation of territorial integrity by including sports organizations from temporarily occupied territories into ROC's structure. The mentioned exclusion remains in force as of today, and this decision has set an important precedent regarding the application of the principle of territorial jurisdiction within the Olympic movement and the need for a consistent approach to compliance with the provisions of the Olympic Charter.

On our part, the Ukrainian side consistently supports the principles and values enshrined in the Olympic Charter, as well as the need to ensure unity, autonomy, integrity, and consistent application of international sports governance norms.

Since 2022, the situation in a military and humanitarian context has not changed; therefore, there are no grounds for changing the IOC's position regarding the return of Belarusian representatives to international sports under national symbols or resuming their participation in international competitions.

The position of the National Olympic Committee of Ukraine, the Ministry of Youth and Sports of Ukraine, and the Ukrainian Football Association remains consistently justified – as long as military actions continue to destroy infrastructure and cause irreparable suffering and deaths among civilians in Ukraine due to war crimes committed by Russia with Belarus's support, representatives from these countries should not be allowed back onto international sports arenas by world sporting authorities.

In connection with the above, we ask FIFA and UEFA not to change the current decision and sanctions regarding Russia, and express our conviction that similar sanctions should be applied to Belarus in football as well.

We highly value the role of FIFA and UEFA as world and European governing bodies for football in ensuring the integrity of global sports, and we look forward to further constructive dialogue and cooperation, particularly within the framework of the Olympic Charter.

With respect,

Vadym Gutzeit, President of the National Olympic Committee of Ukraine,

Matvii Bidnyi, Minister of Youth and Sports of Ukraine, 

Andriy Shevchenko, President of the Ukrainian Football Association.