Ministrite ühisavaldus: Paralümpialiikumise usaldusväärsus satub Venemaa ja Valgevene naasmisega ohtu
12.11.2025
Ühispöördumise allkirjastasid 34 riigi spordiministrid, kõrgemad ametnikud ning Euroopa Komisjon
Kultuuriminister Heidy Purga liitus 34 riigi spordiministrite ja kõrgemate ametnike ning Euroopa Komisjoni ühispöördumisega Rahvusvahelise Paralümpiakomitee (IPC) otsuse osas, millega IPC liikmesorganisatsioonid taastasid pärast peatamist Venemaa ja Valgevene rahvuslike paralümpiakomiteede liikmelisuse.
Pöördumises väljendatakse sügavat muret 27. septembril IPC peaassambleel Lõuna-Koreas tehtud otsuse üle, arvestades, et Venemaa agressioon Ukraina vastu jätkub endiselt ning Venemaa ja Valgevene rikkumised olümpiaharta vastu ei ole lõppenud. Allakirjutanud riigid rõhutavad, et selline samm õõnestab paralümpialiikumise väärtusi ning saadab vale sõnumi neile, kes kaitsevad rahu ja inimõigusi.
„Sõda Ukrainas kestab neljandat aastat, samas tuleb spordiareenilt üha enam signaale, et Venemaa ja Valgevene sportlased võiksid võistlusareenile naasta. Eesti seisukoht on, et Venemaa ja Valgevene tegevus Ukrainas on selge ja jätkuv olümpiaharta rikkumine ning spordiorganisatsioonid ei tohi seda ignoreerida,“ ütles kultuuriminister Heidy Purga. „Meie seisame kindlalt selle eest, et agressorriikide esindus ei kuulu rahvusvahelisele spordiareenile enne, kui sõda on lõppenud ja õiglus taastatud.“
Pöördumises tuletatakse ka meelde, et Rahvusvaheline Olümpiakomitee (ROK) otsustas 19. septembril 2025 säilitada Venemaa ja Valgevene riikliku esindatuse keelu 2026. aasta Milano Cortina taliolümpiamängudel ning säilitada Venemaa Olümpiakomitee liikmelisuse peatamine olümpiaharta rikkumiste eest, põhjendades seda Ukraina rahvusliku olümpiakomitee territoriaalse terviklikkuse rikkumisega.
Samuti mainitakse Rahvusvahelise Paralümpiakomitee 23. oktoobri uuendust, mille kohaselt ei ole praeguse seisuga tõenäoline, et ükski Venemaa või Valgevene sportlane kvalifitseeruks 2026. aasta Milano Cortina taliparalümpiamängudele. Pöördumises kutsutakse IPC-d üles selgitama, mida nende liikmete otsus tähendab paralümpiaalade jaoks ka pärast Milano Cortina 2026. aasta mänge.
Samuti kutsutakse rahvusvahelisi alaliite üles järgima ROKi seisukohta, et Venemaa ja Valgevene ei peaks olema riiklikult esindatud rahvusvahelisel spordiareenil.
Avaldusele on praeguseks allakirjutanud Austraalia, Austria, Belgia, Kanada, Horvaatia, Küpros, Tšehhi Vabariik, Taani, Eesti, Soome, Prantsusmaa, Saksamaa, Kreeka, Island, Iirimaa, Itaalia, Jaapan, Lõuna-Korea, Läti, Liechtenstein, Leedu, Luksemburg, Holland, Uus-Meremaa, Norra, Poola, Portugal, Rumeenia, Sloveenia, Hispaania, Rootsi, Ukraina, Ühendkuningriik ning Euroopa Komisjon.
Pöördumise täistekst inglise keeles:
Statement on the International Paralympic Committee’s announcement of 27 September 2025 on the Russian and Belarusian National Paralympic Committees
We, as Ministers and equivalent senior representatives for sport of our like-minded countries as well as the European Commission, have noted the announcement by the International Paralympic Committee (IPC) of 27 September 2025 that IPC member organisations have voted not to maintain the partial suspensions of the National Paralympic Committees of Belarus and Russia.
We fully respect and recognise the independence and autonomy of sports organisations, and that this was a vote by the IPC membership. We also maintain a strong belief in the unifying spirit of sport and the Olympic and Paralympic Movements. However, we view this development with serious concern, given that the Russian aggression against Ukraine continues and the Russian and Belarusian breaches of the Olympic Charter remain.
Indeed, we recall that the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and IPC sanctions against the Russian and Belarusian Olympic and Paralympic Committees stemmed from the violation of the Olympic Truce, through Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine facilitated by Belarus, launched on 24 February 2022 while the Truce was still in effect.
We note that the IOC in contrast announced on 19 September 2025 that they will be maintaining their stance of ensuring no Russian or Belarusian state representation at the Milan Cortina 2026 Winter Olympic Games. We welcome the IOC’s announcement and their maintenance of their suspension of the Russian Olympic Committee for breaches of the Olympic Charter, including its violation of the territorial integrity of the National Olympic Committee of Ukraine.
We also note the IPC’s update of 23 October that in practice no Russian or Belarusian athletes are now likely to qualify for the Milan Cortina 2026 Winter Paralympic Games. We call upon the IPC to clarify what the decision of their members will mean for paralympic sports events beyond the Milan Cortina 2026 Winter Paralympic Games, and for those areas under the National Paralympic Committee of Ukraine that Russia has temporarily occupied.
We also call upon individual International Federations to continue to follow the IOC stance to ensure no Russian or Belarusian state representation in their sports.
Signed by:
Australia - The Hon Anika Wells MP, Minister for Sport
Austria - Michaela Schmidt, State Secretary for Sport
Belgium - Gregor Freches, Minister for Sport, Culture, Tourism and Media of the German-speaking Community of Belgium. Also signing on behalf of colleagues:
Jacqueline Galant, Minister for Sport, Civil Service, Administrative Simplification and Media of the French Community of Belgium
Annick De Ridder, Minister for Mobility, Public Works, Ports and Sport for the Flemish Government
Canada - Adam van Koeverden, Secretary of State (Sport)
Croatia - Tonči Glavina, Minister of Tourism and Sport
Cyprus - Dr Athena Michaelidou, Minister of Education, Sport and Youth
Czech Republic - Mikuláš Bek, Minister for Education, Youth and Sports
Ondřej Šebek, President of the National Sports Agency
Denmark - Jakob Engel-Schmidt, Minister for Culture
Estonia - Heidy Purga, Minister of Culture
Finland - Mika Poutala, Minister of Youth, Sport and Physical Activity
France - Marina Ferrari, Minister of Sports, Youth and Community Life
Germany - Dr. Christiane Schenderlein, State Minister for Sport and Volunteering
Greece - Ioannis Vroutsis, Alternate Minister of Education, Religious Affairs and Sport
Iceland - Guðmundur Ingi Kristinsson, Minister of Education and Children
Ireland - Charlie McConalogue, Minister of State with responsibility for Sport and Postal Policy
Italy - Andrea Abodi, Minister for Sport and Youth
Japan - MATSUMOTO Yohei, Minister of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology
Republic of Korea - H.E. CHAE Hwi-young, Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism
Latvia - Dace Melbārde, Minister of Education and Science
Liechtenstein - Hubert Büchel, Minister of Home Affairs, Economy and Sports
Lithuania - Raminta Popovienė, Minister of Education, Science and Sport
Luxembourg - Georges Mischo, Minister of Sport
Netherlands - Judith Tielen, Minister for Youth, Prevention and Sport
New Zealand - Hon Mark Mitchell, Minister for Sport and Recreation
Norway - Lubna Jaffery, Minister of Culture and Equality
Poland - Jakub Rutnicki, Minister of Sport and Tourism
Portugal - Margarida Balseiro Lopes, Minister of Culture, Youth and Sport
Romania - Constantin Bogdan Matei, President of the National Sports Agency
Slovenia - Matjaž Han, Minister of the Economy, Tourism and Sport
Spain - Pilar Alegría Continente, Minister of Education, Vocational Training and Sport
Sweden - Jakob Forssmed, Minister for Social Affairs and Public Health
Ukraine - Matvii Bidnyi, Minister of Youth and Sports
United Kingdom - The Rt Hon Lisa Nandy MP, Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport
European Commission - Glenn Micallef, Commissioner for Intergenerational Fairness, Youth, Culture and Sport on behalf of the European Commission