Ilona Bērziņa
Hungary has requested that influential Russian sports officials be removed from the European Union sanctions list, Kyiv Post reports, citing Politico. Such a move could complicate or delay the adoption of the entire sanctions package, as EU sanctions require unanimous approval from all 27 member states. Asked to confirm or deny the report, Latvia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs stated that discussions on extending sanctions are always held in a closed format and that no comments are provided on the negotiation process.
Alongside its response regarding Latvia’s position on EU sanctions — which can be read in full at the end of this article — the Ministry also included a link to a post by Foreign Minister Baiba Braže on X: “A question for the quiz show VIP or Who Wants to Be Smarter: When do campaigners and disinformers of EU-sanctioned Russian oligarchs wake up in Latvia? Answer: When the next sanctions extension deadline approaches.”
Given that the next sanctions extension deadline is indeed approaching, but there is still no clear answer as to whether Hungary has requested the removal of additional Russian sports officials, it is worth examining the consequences on the international stage of last March’s difficult-to-explain lifting of sanctions against Russia’s sports minister — the “Putin soldier,” Z-patriot and vocal war supporter Mikhail Degtyarev.
The aggressor state has made significant progress toward reintegrating its athletes into high-level international competitions. Late last year, the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) upheld Russia’s appeal regarding athlete participation in international competitions, allowing Russian and Belarusian athletes to compete as “neutral athletes.” Meanwhile, at the Paralympic Games, athletes from these countries will be permitted to participate under their national flags. As a result of this decision, a Latvian athlete lost his place. It remains unclear what prompted the International Paralympic Committee (IPC) General Assembly in September last year to unexpectedly lift the disqualification of Russian and Belarusian athletes. It may be coincidence, but both decisions significant to Russia’s propaganda machine were adopted after Degtyarev’s removal from sanctions allowed him to travel freely across Europe and lobby for the aggressor state’s interests at all levels of international sport. Russian media have also emphasised that the lifting of sanctions would make it easier for Degtyarev to implement his strategy of reintegrating Russian sport into the global arena. More on this was reported by The Insider.
Sport as part of Russia’s propaganda machinery
Politicians in various countries have repeatedly warned that sport can become a powerful propaganda weapon. For example, ahead of the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris, Speaker of the Lithuanian Seimas Viktorija Čmilytė-Nielsen called on the international community to oppose Russian and Belarusian participation even under a neutral flag, stating that “Russian propaganda uses their athletes’ victories — even under a neutral flag — as proof that nothing is happening and sanctions are not real but merely a façade.” In countries like Russia and Belarus, “sport is an integral part of politics and propaganda is used extremely intensively.”
Ukraine’s Deputy Minister of Sport also commented last year to Politico on IOC President Kirsty Coventry’s statement that she wanted to open discussions on Russia’s return to the Olympic Games: “In the Russian Federation, sport is part of state policy, it has no autonomy, and athletes and officials are part of the state propaganda machine.”
Now, according to Politico, Hungary is once again attempting to play the seemingly innocent “sport card.” The removal of two more high-level sports officials from sanctions would allow Russia’s propaganda machine to accelerate further.
International sport and Russia’s “soft power”
The lifting of sanctions on Mikhail Degtyarev — supported at the time by Latvian Foreign Minister Baiba Braže — enabled him to maintain unrestricted contacts in international sports diplomacy. It now appears that his efforts to bring Russian sport out of international isolation have been largely successful. “Having gained unprecedented control over the state sports administration and its billion-dollar funding, Degtyarev has returned Russia to the global sports community. In 2025, more Russian athletes will obtain neutral status, allowing them to compete at the highest level of international competitions,” The Insider wrote in May 2025.
At the 2026 Winter Olympics, 13 Russian and 7 Belarusian athletes competed under neutral status. Degtyarev has predicted that Russia’s full return with its flag and anthem could happen as early as April or May. Otherwise, the “Putin soldier” has threatened legal action: “The deadline is May. We will not only go to court demanding the reinstatement of the Russian Olympic Committee but will also file a commercial dispute in a Swiss civil court.”
Recently, this has become Degtyarev’s preferred rhetoric. He has suggested that if Russia calculated all the funds spent preparing its athletes and filed a compensation claim in a Swiss court, the International Olympic Committee would go bankrupt. Such a lawsuit is reportedly ready, and this aggressive tactic places pressure on international sports organisations to concede.
Another example of Russia’s “soft power” in major sport is the disqualification of Ukrainian skeleton athlete Vladyslav Heraskevych for wearing a helmet commemorating fallen Ukrainian athletes. Although there are currently no Russian representatives on the Executive Committee of the International Bobsleigh and Skeleton Federation (IBSF), the Russian Bobsleigh Federation remains listed as an IBSF member on the federation’s website. This enables the aggressor state to manipulate statutes, tribunals and exert pressure on the federation, which now applies the “neutral athlete” approach to Russian athletes. Coincidentally or not, the IBSF Congress adopted this decision shortly after Degtyarev was removed from EU sanctions.
Another instrument of legitimisation
By leveraging sport and displaying Russian flags in Olympic stands, the aggressor state seeks to legitimise itself. According to jauns.lv, Degtyarev also criticised IIHF President Luc Tardif on the “Central Channel” platform VK Video for allowing France to replace Russia at the 2026 Olympics. On a broader political level, he also addressed the Baltic states and Poland:
“It’s very easy to talk to the Baltic states when you appeal to Russia’s thousand-year history. They talk about the Soviet era — oh, should the Red Army have entered or not? What Red Army? You didn’t exist at all; you were part of the Russian Empire. The same with the Poles — we gave them a constitution. And there is much to recall about the Finns as well. As [Russian dictator] Putin said, ‘Russia’s border does not end anywhere.’”
What does the Ministry of Foreign Affairs say?
As noted at the beginning of this article, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs did not confirm whether Hungary had requested the removal of additional Russian sports officials from the sanctions list, as “no comments are provided on the negotiation process.” However, the Ministry emphasised that:
“Latvia’s position is based on the Saeima’s statements of the 24th of February and the 21st of April, 2022 regarding Ukraine, which called for the maximum application of sanctions, as well as on Cabinet decisions reaffirmed in the 17th of February, 2026 government meeting and the information report on the agenda of the EU Foreign Affairs Council meeting of the 23rd of February, 2026 (26-TA-387).
Latvia’s government position is that existing sanctions must be extended as long as Russia has not ceased its aggression, fully restored Ukraine’s territorial integrity within its internationally recognised borders, and compensated Ukraine for the damage caused. Latvia also supports the timely extension of EU sanctions as part of the EU’s support for Ukraine. It is important for Latvia that the individual sanctions regime against actions undermining Ukraine’s territorial integrity, sovereignty and independence be maintained. We categorically oppose any attempts to weaken sanctions, including politically motivated efforts to remove individuals from the sanctions list.
In line with Latvia’s national interests and the EU’s common sanctions policy, Latvia will not propose or support lifting sanctions against any natural or legal person, regardless of nationality. On the contrary, Latvia has consistently advocated strengthening sanctions, actively participating in work on the latest sanctions packages and proposing additional individuals, entities and ‘shadow fleet’ vessels for inclusion on the sanctions list in cooperation with our allies and partners, in order to reduce Russia’s capabilities and budget revenues and bring an end to the aggression.”
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