Fenerbahçe president said on Saturday that the Turkish club would not apologize to Ukraine for the pro-Putin slogans chanted by its supporters during the match against Dynamo Kyiv on Wednesday night in Istanbul.
“We are not going to apologize to Ukraine. It is up to the Ukrainian ambassador and the spokesman of the Ukrainian Ministry of Foreign Affairs to apologize to us, after their inappropriate remarks.said club president Ali Koç.
“I think it was an inappropriate and unnecessary slogan, far from Fenerbahçe’s identity. But what can we do? Shut their mouths?”he added.
Ukraine’s ambassador to Turkey, Vasyl Bodnar, on Thursday condemned the slogans chanted by Turkish fans.
“It is very sad to hear from Fenerbahçe supporters words that support the murderer and the aggressor who is bombarding our country,” he reacted in Turkish on Twitter.
“Our armed forces beat Putin 2-1 on Turkish soil (…) We recommend Turkish fans to be on the winning side”tweeted Ukrainian Foreign Ministry spokesman Oleg Nikolenko.
Dynamo Kyiv beat Fenerbahçe 2-1 in the 2nd qualifying round for the Champions League.
After the goal scored by the Ukrainian Vitaliy Buyalski (57th), Fenerbahçe supporters began to chant the name of the Russian head of state, according to videos shared by social networks.
UEFA announced on Thursday the opening of a disciplinary investigation into the “supposed bad behavior” of Turkish fans.
Before the refusal to ask for forgiveness from its president, Fenerbahçe had condemned the attitude of its supporters on Thursday in a press release.
The pro-Putin slogans also caused an uproar on social media where many Turkish netizens called them “ashamed”.
“I condemn those who try to give political meaning to a slogan that lasted 20 seconds, as if it were a coordinated action. Fenerbahçe’s position, like that of Turkey, in relation to this invasion is clear. We are not on anyone’s side. We have Ukrainian and Russian players”said Mr. Koç.
While swiftly condemning the Russian offensive in Ukraine, Turkey opted for neutrality between the two countries and did not join Western sanctions against Moscow.
