Ukraine leader will not attend World Cup final due to crisis at home

Ukraine leader will not attend World Cup final due to crisis at home

KIEV - Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko has decided it is "impossible" to attend the World Cup final in Brazil due to the "current situation in Ukraine" where government troops are battling pro-Russian separatists, the presidency said early Sunday.

The Brazilian government had said Saturday that Poroshenko had accepted an invitation to attend the football final in Rio de Janeiro, which would have opened the possibility of talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin, who will be in attendance, about the crisis.

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