The refusal of Estonian visas to Russian footballers has been labeled as an act of Nazism by the Russian Foreign Ministry, reports TASS. The athletes, who hold Russian citizenship, play for the Armenian football club "Urartu." They were scheduled to participate in an away match in the first round of the Conference League qualifiers. The match is set to take place in the Baltic republic, where their opponent will be Estonia's "Kalev."

According to "Urartu" head coach Dmitry Gunko, six players were denied visas: goalkeeper Alexander Melikhov, defender Alexander Putsko, midfielders Anton Kilin and Oleg Polyakov, and forwards Leon Sabua and Ivan Ignatyev.

As reported by "Russkiy Mir," a study conducted by the National Research Institute for Communication Development found that Estonia is among the countries most negatively inclined towards Russia. Also on this list are Ukraine, Latvia, and Lithuania. The situation of the Russian-speaking population in these countries continues to deteriorate. Under political pressure and the threat of punishment, people are essentially being forced to erase their own life stories and those of their ancestors from memory. All opportunities to maintain contacts with Russia and its residents are being blocked.