UN urges Olympic truce for 2026 Winter Games after Russia-Ukraine war
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Nearly four years after Russia violated the Olympic ceasefire by invading Ukraine just days after the 2022 Beijing Winter Games, the UN is calling on all nations to observe the ceasefire this time around.
In the defense made at the UN General Assembly on Wednesday, it was stated that stopping fights at one of the world’s leading sporting events could be “a tool to promote peace, dialogue, tolerance and reconciliation” ahead of the 2026 Milan-Cortina Games.
The unanimous adoption of the decision in the world body consisting of 193 countries was greeted with applause by diplomats, the International Olympic Committee and sports representatives.
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A crew member moves to fix the logo of the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics before the opening ceremony to reveal the motto of the Winter Olympics and Paralympics to be held in Beijing on Friday, September 17, 2021. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)
Italian Giovanni Malagò, president of the Winter Olympics organizing committee, introduced the decision.
“In a time of increasing discord and conflict, sport and the Olympic Games can provide a beacon of hope as an alternative to rivalry and division,” he said.
The resolution recalled the ancient Greek tradition of ekecheiria, or Olympic Truce, with the aim of promoting a peaceful environment and ensuring the safe passage and participation of athletes in the games and “thus mobilizing the youth of the world to the cause of peace.”
International Olympic Committee President Kirsty Coventry told the meeting just before the resolution was adopted that in a world where “conflict and division continue to cause untold suffering”, the Olympic Games “can offer a rare space where people meet as human beings, not as enemies”.
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He said the Olympic Truce was “a call to put aside the things that divide us and focus on the things that unite us.”
However, he emphasized that athletes cannot do this alone.
Coventry called on all countries to “keep sport and politics separate” and ensure athletes are not denied visas for political reasons. He said athletes “should be evaluated based on their sporting merits, not on where they come from.”
Coventry’s call not to refuse visas comes weeks after a global row erupted when the Indonesian government refused to grant visas to the Israeli national gymnastics team for the World Gymnastics Championships in Jakarta. The IOC consequently recommended that no international competitions be held in Indonesia, ending any discussion of the country hosting the Olympics in the future.
The 2026 Winter Olympics will be held in Cortina and Milan from February 4 to February 26.
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Russia violated the Olympic Truce three times in 14 years; It went to war with Georgia over the disputed region of South Ossetia during the 2008 Beijing Summer Olympics, and launched a military intervention annexing Ukraine’s Crimean Peninsula following the close of the 2014 Sochi Winter Olympics, then violating it again in 2022.
Russia was banned from participating in the 2024 Paris Olympics due to the timing of its invasion of Ukraine. However, Russian athletes competed as neutrals and were allowed to attend the closing ceremony.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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