Anna Arutunyan
MOSCOW — Russian President Vladimir
Putin lashed out at the United States on Thursday, accusing it of
meddling in global soccer amid an unprecedented corruption scandal.
In televised comments, Putin called the U.S.
involvement in the FIFA investigation "strange" and said the country
was overstepping its power amid growing concerns, especially that of Russia's,
that the scandal could affect that country's hosting of the 2018
World Cup .
Corruption charges were announced
Wednesday in the U.S. against 14 FIFA officials and sports executives. Seven
were arrested in Switzerland .
The allegations include racketeering, wire fraud, money laundering and bribery,
and relate to at least two generations of soccer officials who are accused of
acquiring millions of dollars in bribes and kickbacks, U.S. Attorney General Loretta
Lynch said.
Speaking to journalists Thursday, Putin called the
probe "a clear attempt to keep Mr. (Sepp) Blatter from being re-elected as
president of FIFA," according to an official statement on the Kremlin's
website. Blatter is expected to win a fifth term Friday.
"This is a blatant violation of the
principle of how international organizations function," Putin said.
"We are aware of the pressure that he was subjected to in relation to
Russia holding the 2018 World Cup."
Putin compared the United States'
involvement in the case to the persecution of whistleblowers Julian
Assange and Edward
Snowden . He accused the U.S. of overstepping its
"jurisdiction," saying it was "strange" that Washington had
requested the arrests when the crimes did not involve U.S. citizens and did not
happen in the country.
His comments were the latest example of growing
tensions between the two nations, following Russia's annexation of Crimea last year and its backing of
rebels in Ukraine .
Putin's successes in securing Russia's
bid for the 2014
Winter Olympics and the
2018 World Cup were seen as some of the top achievements of his administration
among Russians.
Russia's Foreign Ministry called the
arrests of FIFA officials "illegal" and called on Washington to
"stop trying to hold court far beyond your own borders using your own
legal norms and (instead) adhere to accepted international legal
procedure," according to an official statement from Foreign Ministry
spokesman Alexander Lukashevich posted on the ministry's website.
Swiss prosecutors said Thursday they
planned to question 10 FIFA executive committee members who were with the
organization in 2010, when voting took place that awarded Russia the World Cup
in 2018 and Qatar the tournament in 2022.
Russia's Sports Minister Vitaly
Mutko , who is one of the members, said he did not receive any
invitation for questioning, Russia's sports news agency, R-Sport, reported
Thursday.
Mutko did however fly to Switzerland on
Wednesday, but said it was not related to the case.
"The FIFA executive committee is
here, the Congress is supposed to take place here, and the president of FIFA is
going to be elected tomorrow. As a member of the executive committee I am
involved in these events," Mutko said, according to Russia's RSN agency.
Asked about the possibility of Russia
losing its host status for the 2018 World Cup, he said there were no reasons
for this to happen.
The 2018 World Cup is coming up too soon
for Russia to likely lose its bid, local sports commentators say, but it is a
possibility, particularly if Blatter is not re-elected.
"Right now FIFA is saying that the World Cup will
stay in Russia in 2018 and Qatar in 2022. But that could begin to look
increasingly shaky if and when more revelations emerge," said Marc
Bennets, a Moscow-based journalist and the author of Football Dynamo, a book about
Russia's soccer culture.
"Putin certainly believes in a
U.S.-led plot to harm Russia, and so it's not surprising that he has spoken
out. He personally backed Russia's bid for the 2018 World Cup, and it would be
seen as a big blow if Russia was to now lose it," he added.
For Russia to lose its bid, "a
court would have to order a new bidding process. But that would only be
possible if there was overwhelming evidence of corruption involved with
Russia's bid," Bennets said. "Sepp Blater would be loath to do this
though, but his position could be under real threat soon."
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