Volleyball clubs made mistake in refusal to travel to Turkey: Russian minister

Russian Sport Minister Vitaly Mutko said that it was wrong for volleyball teams to refuse to go to Turkey to participate in the championship games.

"Turkey can ensure security. For me, the Russian clubs made a mistake. They are professional and independent clubs; this is their own choice," Mutko told reporters in Moscow on Tuesday. “But we would not let such a thing happen at the national level."

"There is no need to escalate further tension or to dramatize the situation. We have split the diplomatic relations with Turkey. We decided that the teams do not have to have their camps in Turkey. However, there is no need to make such a decision if the official calendar is in question," he explained, citing the Russian teams' refusal to go to Turkey.

Belogorie Belgorod and Dinamoc Moscow refused to go to Turkey for the matches, scheduled for December 1 and 2, to support President Vladimir Putin's attempt, which put ties with Ankara under strain. If the teams had arrived in Turkey, Belogorie Belgorod would have competed against Arkas Spor İzmir on December 1, Dinamo Moscow would have played against Ziraat Bankası Ankara.

The Russian Volleyball Federation sent a request to the European Volleyball Confederation (CEV) to review the place and the date of the games, which were originally supposed played in the Championship between Russian and Turkish teams in Turkey.

The Federation's official call came just a day after Turkey shot down the Russian Su-24 bomber, on November 24. The Federation demanded the matches be played in a neutral country for security reasons if the games were to be played as scheduled.

The Russian government urged the two clubs not to travel to Turkey after a Russian plane was downed by a Turkish F-16 fighter jet in Turkish air space. Officials in Moscow made this call as part of a package of sanctions, including a ban on imports of Turkish produce, ending visa-free travel, and banning travel agencies from offering tours to Turkey.

Putin also called on his citizens to take their vacations in the Svalbard Islands, located in the Arctic Ocean halfway between Norway and the North Pole, rather than visiting Antalya, one of the most-visited holiday spots for Russians.