By Mark Baber
October 4 – The Russian Foreign Ministry commented on Thursday evening on the possible entry into Russia of Michael Garcia, confirming that the head of the FIFA ethics committee was not welcome.
The Russian Foreign Ministry Information and Press Department said: “As it is known, in response to the Department of State releasing the names of Russian citizens, to whom entry into the United States is banned, in April 2013 citing the so-called Magnitsky bill, the Russian Foreign Ministry has released the same number of US citizens, including former and current officials guilty of high-profile human rights violations and pursuing our fellow citizens.”
Garcia is stepping up his inquiry into possible voting irregularities for the 2018 and 2022 World Cups and he had announced his intention to visit every country directly involved in the voting, despite knowing that he has been on the so-called “Guantanamo List” of US officials responsible for torture and other gross violations of human rights or involved in politically motivated prosecutions of Viktor Bout and other Russians.
As a US federal prosecutor, Garcia was involved in the prosecution of Russian citizen Viktor Bout, who is currently serving a 25 year sentence in a Federal penitentiary in Illinois on charges of arms smuggling, terrorism and conspiracy to kill US citizens in connection with his air cargo company delivering arms to rebels in Colombia.
Garcia was put on a blacklist by Russian authorities after Washington named 18 Russians barred from the US for alleged involvement in the death of lawyer Sergei Magnitsky or other gross human rights abuses.
The Foreign Ministry reiterated yesterday: “Let there be no doubt: We intend to react firmly to unfriendly attacks and unceremonious infringements on the rights of Russian citizens. Anyone who is involved in such things should think hard.”
Reiterating Russia’s actions were defensive in nature, the Ministry said: “Questions arising in connection with visa blacklists should be addressed to the initiators and executors of the extraterritorial and discriminatory ‘Magnitsky Act’, which contradicts norms of international law.”
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