The 2018 World Cup hosted by Russia is a very good opportunity to keep channels for cooperation open between Moscow and the West amid unease in current relations, UK Ambassador to Russia, Laurie Bristow, said Thursday.
“We all know that Russia’s relations with [its] Western partners is going through a difficult period. Above all in difficult political times, we need to keep channels open.
“In the next twelve months there will be very important opportunities to do this, in particular the World Cup,” Bristow said at the RBCC RussiaTalk Forum.
The ambassador highlighted that Russia and the UK have been working on coordinating law enforcement from both countries for the World Cup.
She said: “We’ve worked hard this year to build successful police to police cooperation with our Russian partners so visitors from the UK can come to Russia, confident they will have a safe and enjoyable experience here.”
The ambassador confirmed that the UK and Russia would keep working on developing bilateral economic relationship.
Bristow said: “Above all I want to make clear that the UK will continue in investing and developing the economic relationship between Russia and the UK.”
Relations between Russia and the West deteriorated over the Ukrainian crisis and Crimea’s reunification with Russia in 2014.
The European Union and the U.S. imposed sanctions against Russia, citing Moscow’s alleged interference in Kiev’s internal affairs.
Russia has denied the accusations and, in response, introduced a food embargo against products from the states involved in putting sanctions on Moscow.
Russia will host its first FIFA World Cup from June 14 to July 15, 2018.
The games will take place in Moscow, St. Petersburg, Kaliningrad, Volgograd, Kazan, Nizhny Novgorod, Samara, Saransk, Rostov-on-Don, Yekaterinburg and Sochi.
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