Russian Cats Banned from International Competitions

In response to the war in Ukraine, the International Cat Federation has banned all cats from Russia — and Russian breeds — from competing in international competitions.

According to a statement released last week by the Fédération Internationale Féline (FIFe), as it’s known in French, all cats bred in Russia, as well as all cats with owners living in Russia, would not be permitted to register for international competitions outside of Russia nor even be added to pedigree books starting this week.

In a statement released last Thursday, FIFe stated that it “cannot just witness these atrocities and do nothing,” in reference to the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

International Cat Federation bans Russian cats from shows

“Many innocent people died, many more are wounded and hundreds of thousands of Ukrainians are forced to flee their homes to save their lives…On top of that our Ukrainian fellow feline fanciers are desperately trying to take care of their cats and other animals in these trying circumstances,” the statement reads.

The rules will stay in place until the end of May, when they will be reviewed. FIFe has also allotted money toward supporting cat fanciers and breeders in Ukraine.

FIFe, which calls itself the “United Nations of cat federations,” has members from over 40 countries across the globe. It was created 70 years ago and hosts over 700 competitions and shows across the world each year, in which 200,000 cats compete.

While countless countries across the world have slapped Russia with substantial sanctions in an effort to punish the country for invading Ukraine, many social media users viewed FIFe’s ban on Russian cats as laughable, or even discriminatory.

Barring Russian literature from dead authors; barring Russian athletes; removing Russian cats from competition; destroying vodka that’s not from Russia – This is wasteful and insignificant behavior which will propagate undue hate on the people not response for Putin’s evil.

— Chef Andrew Gruel (@ChefGruel) March 3, 2022

Some argued that the ban, which impacts Russian cats and their breeders — not the Russian leaders responsible for the war — is simply a platitude rather than a substantive move toward supporting Ukrainians.

Others lauded the federation for doing what it could to stand in solidarity with the Ukrainian people in the face of war with Russia.

Russian cat reads email about competition exclusion. pic.twitter.com/crwYDIctGQ

— Kowalski (@hailetsion21) March 7, 2022

US bans Russian oil

The United States banned Russian oil imports despite that nation warning the world earlier on Tuesday that there may be “catastrophic” increases in oil prices if Western countries ban the imports, as several other nations have proposed to do.

Last week, US senators introduced legislation calling for a complete ban on Russian oil imports to the country; the bill received wide support across the aisle almost instantaneously.

NBC News reports that the move was made as the administration increases the pressure on the Russian economy over the Ukraine invasion.

President Joe Biden delivered remarks from the White House on Tuesday morning to “announce actions to continue to hold Russia accountable for its unprovoked and unjustified war on Ukraine,” a White House spokesman said.