The IBA lifted a ban on athletes from Russia and Belarus last year and allowed them to compete under their own flags.

This contradicts the recommendations of the International Olympic Committee (IOC), with whom the IBA's relations have slumped since its delegates voted against staging a fresh Presidential election at an Extraordinary Congress in Yerevan last year.

The IOC has recommended that athletes from Russia and Belarus are excluded from international competitions since February last year because of the war in Ukraine.

Even as it is "exploring a pathway" for their return, it has insisted that sanctions including a ban on national flags, symbols and anthems would remain in place.

The IBA has been suspended by the IOC since 2019 because of ongoing governance concerns, but it is the only governing body of an Olympic sport which has allowed Russian and Belarusian athletes to compete under their own flags.

Kremlev - the only Russian official who heads up an Olympic sport - has claimed that the IBA's decision is in the interest of athletes.

"They should participate," he told Reuters.

"It should not be some kind of privilege that is given depending on the circumstances.

"Each international association should have these standards.

"We, as an international association, must protect each athlete.

"And we must understand that for athletes the most important thing is when the anthem plays and when their country's flag is raised.

"The IOC can give recommendations.

"Their Charter clearly says that it is impossible to punish the athlete, or to infringe on his rights."

The Olympic Charter declares "the practice of sport is a human right", and its rights and freedoms laid out "shall be secured without discrimination of any kind", including "national or social origin".

insidethegames has asked the IOC for a comment.

The IBA's stance has led to several countries boycotting its events including the upcoming Women's and Men's Boxing World Championships.

Disciplinary action has been opened by the IBA against USA Boxing executive director Mike McAtee, Boxing Canada President Ryan O'Shea, Czech Boxing Association leader Marek Šimák, Swedish Boxing Association chair Per-Axel Sjöholmv and Boxing New Zealand President Steve Hartley, who have been accused of "inciting a boycott".

Kremlev explained to Reuters the reasoning behind the move, which followed complaints to the Boxing Independent Integrity Unit.

"We have a clear regulation regarding this," he said.

"If someone plans to boycott or something like that, they will face a Disciplinary Committee."

Boxing remains off the initial programme for the Los Angeles 2028 Olympics, and the IOC warned last year that it could even be dropped from Paris 2024 - where the IBA has no involvement for the second consecutive Games - following a renewal of the governing body's ties with Russian majority state-owned energy giant Gazprom.

Kremlev has previously claimed the IOC has "no right to dictate to us how to live", and has hinted at a potential future outside the Olympic Games with comments including "we are going to take our own path".

However, he warned the IOC that it would lose a valuable sport on the Olympic programme if it dropped boxing.

"Without us, the IBA would no longer do boxing," Kremlev told Reuters.

"And scaring the IBA and the boxing family in general with the threat that boxing could be excluded - if that happened the Olympics should not see it as just losing boxing, but losing the most beautiful sport."

Boxing has been contested at every edition of the Summer Olympic Games since its introduction to the programme at St Louis 1904 except for Stockholm 1912, because Swedish law banned the sport at the time.