During a meeting on Thursday, Jalali met with Ghafour Kargari, the President of Iran’s National Paralympic Committee (NPC), who had traveled to Moscow to attend the 30th anniversary celebration of the Russian Paralympic Committee on May 21-22.
Jalali criticized the double standards of Western countries in sports, noting that while these nations claim sports should be free of politics, the sanctions imposed on Russia and the decision to award the United States, an aggressor, the hosting of the FIFA World Cup are further examples of the West’s contradictory behavior.
He emphasized the importance of sports diplomacy in today’s world, adding that strengthening sports cooperation, exchanging sports teams, and organizing joint sports events between Iran and Russia are key provisions of the comprehensive strategic partnership treaty between our two countries.
For his part, Kargari referred to the cooperation of countries, including Iran, in lifting some restrictions on Russian teams and athletes, noting, “The successful experience of multilateral cooperation to lift sanctions on Russian athletes competing under their flag and anthem, including at the Olympics and Paralympics, serves as an example of multilateralism in the realm of sports.”
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