A federation of cat registries has joined hands with the Western governments in imposing sanctions on Russia in view of its assault on Ukraine.
As per the statement released by Fédération Internationale Féline (FIFe), “it cannot just witness these atrocities & do nothing.” Consequently, it has introduced several measures to stop Russian cats from being registered into its records or taking an entry into its exhibitions outside of Russia.
According to the statement, “no cat bred in Russia may be imported & registered in any FIFe pedigree book outside of Russia, regardless of, which organization issued its pedigree”. Secondly, “no cat belonging to exhibitors living in Russia may take an entry at any FIFe show going outside Russia, regardless of, which organization these exhibitors hold their membership in”.
FIFe calls itself the ”United Nations of Cat Federations” & includes 42 members from 40 countries, including Switzerland, the United Kingdom & Germany.
The restrictions have been imposed till May 31, 2022, and will be reviewed as per the situation at the time, the statement added.
The non-profit organization has conveyed shock at Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. “Many innocent people became victims of this crisis, many more are wounded & hundreds of thousands of Ukrainians are forced to leave their homes to save their lives. We can all see the destruction & chaos caused by this unprecedented act of aggression,” it said.
The Federations has also planned to donate a part of its budget to “support cat breeders & fanciers in Ukraine who are suffering due to the current situation.”
On Wednesday, the United States has made an announcement that it had closed its airspace to Russian flights. Several nations across the world, including Switzerland, which has historically been neutral, have imposed economic sanctions against Russia, depreciating the value of Russia.