Smoking the peace pipe
NaVi, Team Spirit blast Ukraine invasion There is nothing worse than war
The biggest professional teams in DOTA 2 — Natus Vincere (NaVi) and Team Spirit — strongly opposed the Russian military operation in its neighboring country, Ukraine.
An Esports organization based in the Ukrainian capital of Kyiv, NavVi issued a statement, saying that it is very impossible to pretend that everything is going well amid the chaos brought by the military campaign ordered by Russian President Vladimir Putin last week.
“Russia attacked Ukraine — and now there are hostilities that take human lives and destroy actual destinies on the territory of our country,” said NaVi, the first team to win The International in 2011, in a statement.
“It is impossible during this war to pretend that everything is okay. It is not. We are all devastated.”
NaVi said they are trying their best to stay calm and united.
“Our main goal right now is to try to stay calm and try to take care of ourselves, our loved ones, and those who need help. We are all in this together and we can get through it.”
Meanwhile, Russian squad Team Spirit, which drew praise from no less than Putin after ruling The International 10 in Romania last year, also expressed its concern over the safety of its players and employees who are stranded in Ukraine.
“There is nothing worse than war. There is nothing more precious than human lives.
Team Spirit is an international Esports organization that is represented historically by players from Russia, Ukraine and other countries,” Team Spirit said.
“Some of our players and employees are in Ukraine at this time. Many of us have families, relatives, loved ones and friends there. We are worried about their lives and safety. We are against the war and against violence.”
The Russian invasion of Ukraine had sent shockwaves around the world that reverberated across multiple industries, including Esports.
NaVi had been very vocal about the invasion and even broke its partnership with Russian Esports company ESforce Holding for denying the “horrors” brought by the war.
“The Russian army continues to attack civilian areas and hundreds of thousands of residents have already left their homes while others continue to fight for the future of the country,” NaVi said in a separate statement.
“When people are dying and thousands of destinies are getting destroyed irreversibly, there is no time for Esports.”
“While NaVi employees and players spend their days in bomb shelters, ESforce Holding publicly denies the horror that is happening in Ukraine. We consider this position unacceptable and inhumane. NaVi breaks off every cooperation with the holding company, including RuHub, Epic Esports Evets, Cybersports.ru and Virtus. pro.”