Французская Республика
Press release on the detainment of Russian football fans in France
On June 15, French Ambassador to Moscow Jean-Maurice Ripert was summoned to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs over the detention of Russian football fans who were travelling from Marseille to Lille for the next UEFA Euro 2016 match of the Russian team.
The French diplomat was notified of the discriminatory and sweeping nature of the measures taken against Russian citizens by the Marseille prosecutor, who decided to detain the 43 Russians, including three drivers, for 48 hours to conduct an investigation. The Russian Foreign Ministry also considers it unacceptable that Russian consulate agencies in France have not been informed. The fans were prevented from leaving their bus for several hours, and it was only thanks to the prompt and effective intervention of the Russian consular staff that the events were prevented from taking a more dramatic turn.
The Russian Foreign Ministry has called on the French authorities to seriously consider the situation and to determine the fate of the detained Russian citizens as soon as possible, in a civilised manner and in accordance with the law. The French diplomat was also told that the continued fanning of anti-Russian sentiment over the participation of the Russian team in Euro 2016 could seriously hurt Russian-French relations.