RIO DE JANEIRO (AP) – It just might be a case of soccer diplomacy.
Brazilian officials have confirmed that Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko and Russian leader Vladimir Putin will both attend Sunday’s World Cup final match in Rio de Janeiro, a game pitting Argentina against Germany.
Both men will be inside Maracana stadium, circulating in a VIP area along with other heads of state. As yet, no formal meeting was set for Putin and Poroshenko, an encounter that perhaps could pave the way to renewed peace talks on ending the conflict between pro-Russian and pro-Western forces in Ukraine.
“But they’ll be in the same area, on the same floor,” said a Brazilian government official with direct knowledge of Poroshenko’s last-minute trip to Rio. “Will they meet? Who knows?”
The official, who insisted on anonymity to discuss information about the visit that he wasn’t authorized to reveal, said Poroshenko was persuaded by German Chancellor Angela Merkel to fly to Rio and watch the match with her. Merkel, along with French leader Francois Hollande, are the key European leaders trying to broker peace in Ukraine.