Football fans should “think twice” about travelling to the World Cup in Russia this summer as consular services are threatened by the diplomatic crisis between Vladimir Putin and the west, a senior White House official has warned. The UK Foreign Office says consular teams were available around the clock to assist the 20,000 England fans who visited Brazil for the last World Cup in 2014. The provision of such support will be more difficult in Russia in the present climate, the senior Trump administration official said. The White House also singled out Russia’s attempts to subvert western democracies. The senior official said: “In the case of Russia, this is a very hierarchical society.

Source: The Guardian April 08, 2018 21:00 UTC