Brazilian football legend, Pele has urged President Vladimir Putin to end Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Pele made the call on Instagram, ahead of Ukraine’s 2022 World Cup playoff semi-final against Scotland.
He told Putin that “there is absolutely no justification for this continued violence.”
Pele added: “This conflict is wicked, unjustifiable and brings nothing but pain, fear, terror and anguish.”
The former professional footballer also told Putin that “there’s no ideology that justifies projectile missiles burying the dreams of children, ruining families and killing the innocent.”
He recalled a meeting with Putin in 2017 and added: “The power to stop this conflict is in your hands. The same ones I shook in Moscow, at our last meeting in 2017.”
Read Pele’s full statement below.
