KIEV, July 13 (Xinhua) -- Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko will not attend the World Cup closing ceremony in Brazil due to the flare-up of violence in eastern Ukraine, his office said on Sunday.
The president found it impossible to watch the World Cup final because of the "current situation in Ukraine," where government troops were battling insurgents in the restive eastern regions.
On Saturday, the Brazilian authorities said Poroshenko would travel to Rio de Janeiro for Sunday's World Cup final, which would have opened the possibility of talks between the Ukrainian president and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin.
Tensions between Ukraine and Russia have been escalating since February when protests in the mostly Russian-speaking eastern part of Ukraine started shortly after the ouster of former Ukrainian president Viktor Yanukovych. Later, the protests snowballed into violent unrest, with insurgents demanding their region split from Ukraine.
Putin, whose country will host the 2018 World Cup, confirmed his attendance weeks ago. He will also attend a summit of the BRICS emerging nations - Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa on Tuesday and Wednesday.
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