Rome, Sep 27 (LaPresse) – “International Paralympic Committee, are you kidding?” This is the question posed by Ukrainian Foreign Minister Matvii Bidnyi on social media after learning of the decision by the IPC in Seoul to readmit Russian and Belarusian athletes to the upcoming Milan-Cortina 2026 Paralympic Games, after they were banned following the invasion of Ukraine on February 24, 2022. “First of all, we will continue to fight for sport free from Russian propaganda. The position of the host country and the organizing committee is very important, and we are already working on this. We urge our European partners who will host the Winter Paralympic Games not to allow the flag of a criminal nation to wave over a free and democratic space while aggression continues,” Bidnyi said, addressing the Milan-Cortina Organizing Committee. “Secondly,” the minister specified, “this case clearly illustrates why the integrity and ability of some sports organizations to act independently have increasingly been questioned. Today it became known that a former member of the UK European Parliament accepted bribes to support Russian positions. This is yet another reminder that a country whose political culture is based on disregard for rules and values has never hesitated to lavish resources promoting its interests. We might still discover how many rubles were spent by those who voted to restore the right to justify, in sporting arenas, the crimes of those who each day kill and maim Ukrainians, including women and children, in betrayal of their conscience and Olympic values. Finally, the decision on participation will be taken collectively at a later stage, based on many circumstances. In making this decision, we will be guided solely by the interests of our free and united Ukraine.”