London, June 8 (ANI): Ministers in Britain will boycott England's group games in the European football championships in Ukraine.
The move comes in protest against the 'selective justice' meted out to jailed former Ukrainian Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko, The BBC reports.
The UK Foreign Office said: "No officials will be attending the three group games and it was keeping attendance at later stages of the tournament under review in the light of ministers' busy schedules ahead of the Olympics and widespread concerns about selective justice and the rule of law in Ukraine".
Foreign Secretary William Hague said that Ukraine had 'serious problems'.
He said that the UK Government did not want its backing for the England team to be interpreted as 'giving political support to some things which have been happening in Ukraine which we don't agree with'.
Other EU nations, including Germany, Holland and Austria, have also threatened to boycott the tournament, which is being jointly hosted with Poland.kraine's ambassador to the UK said 'sport and politics do not mix' and concerns must be raised in other ways.
Ukrainian foreign ministry spokesman Oleg Voloshin said that Britain's concerns were understood, but the boycott would only damage football and not affect Tymoshenko's case.
Tymoshenko had played a key role in the Orange Revolution in 2004 and said that her imprisonment, for alleged corruption, is an act of political revenge by Ukraine's President Viktor Yanukovych.
The authorities have rejected Tymoshenko's allegations. She was jailed for seven years in October, for abuse of power during her time as prime minister. (ANI)
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