Legendary Czech ice hockey goalie Dominik Hašek put some of the blame on Western countries for Russia's invasion of Ukraine. According to the Nagano '98 Olympic champion, many people were very lukewarm about the aggressor country's annexation of Crimea.

Hasek said this in an interview with Sport.ua during his visit to Kharkiv and Kyiv. He called his own mistake of silence in 2014 after the first phase of the Russian invasion of our country occurred. The former hockey player added that he was shocked by the decision of Kremlin dictator Vladimir Putin to attack Ukraine.

"On February 23, 2022, I never would have believed that such a thing was possible in this day and age, in the middle of Europe. When I woke up the next morning, I was stunned by the news. It was a shock to me that Russia had gone into Ukraine with a full-scale war. It was our joint fault for not paying enough attention to the events in Ukraine at the time. I understood in 2014 that Russia had no right to take Crimea from Ukraine, but I wasn't active enough to start speaking out loud through my own social networks as early as 2014. That was my mistake. I understand that now," Hašek said.

Earlier, the great hockey player recorded a new video message to Ukrainians, wishing them to "chase Russian crap." He also called Russian hockey player and founder of the Putin Team movement Alexander Ovechkin, who keeps quiet about the war in Ukraine, a coward. Alexander Kozhevnikov, an Olympic hockey champion from Russia, called Hašek sick in the head.

As reported by OBOZREVATEL, former coach of the Ukrainian national team Andrei Nazarov demanded to return Russia to the World Cup of Hockey, as "Russia does not bend to anyone".

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