Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine Dmytro Kuleba welcomes the principled stance of German Interior Minister Nancy Faeser on the need to exclude Russian and Belarusian athletes from participating in sports competitions.

"I applaud Nancy Faeser's principled stance on the necessity of barring Russian and Belarusian athletes. If international sports officials fail to uphold their principles, responsible governments must step in and refuse entry to athletes who represent war and state propaganda," he said on Twitter.

Earlier, German Interior Minister Faeser threatened to ban Russian athletes from entering the country if the International Olympic Committee (IOC) allowed them to compete.