Russian fans at Euro 2012 are not safe in Poland because “everyone” is turning against them, Russian Sports Minister Vitaly Mutko told R-Sport on Wednesday.
Poles made up most of the 180 people arrested after Polish fans attacked police and a crowd of 7,000 Russian supporters, who were marching to celebrate a national holiday, before the two countries’ teams played each other later that evening.
“Where has all this aggression against Russian fans come from? People don’t feel safe at all,” Mutko said.
“Everyone is turning against us.”
Gangs of Polish hooligans are roaming the streets looking for Russians, he suggested.
“A typical Russian family is strolling around the city and suddenly a crowd rushes out of some gateway or other and pounces,” he said.
“Other people are sitting in a cafe and the same thing happens. How can our people live there for four more days?”
In a separate development, Russian fans will be given advice on how to avoid attacks, the head of the All-Russian Fans’ Union told R-Sport.
“Relevant instructions will be given to Russian fans, such as, for example, they give out in countries that are dangerous for tourism,” he said.
Of the 184 arrested, 156 are Polish and 25 Russians, Warsaw police said in a website statement. One Spanish national, one Hungarian and one Algerian were also held in connection with the disturbances.
Polish Interior Minister Jacek Cichocki said on Wednesday that the detained Russians would likely be deported from Poland and banned from Europe's border-free Schengen area for five years.
Ten people were injured, including seven Poles, two Russians and a German. Of those, seven Poles and one Russian were kept in hospital overnight, regional governor Jacek Kozlowski said.
A further 150 people were treated for minor injuries, he said.
The clashes at the march followed attacks Friday by Russian fans on Polish stewards after their first match in Wroclaw, and other sporadic incidents mainly involving people from both countries, according to Polish authorities.
Poland and Russia have frayed political ties and both countries have problems with football hooliganism.
