The executive board of the Eurovision Song Contest announced on Friday that no Russian act would participate in this year's contest over Russia's military operation in Ukraine.
"The decision reflects concern that, in light of the unprecedented crisis in Ukraine, the inclusion of a Russian entry in this year's Contest would bring the competition into disrepute," said a press release by the song contest.
It said the decision was made by the Executive Board of the European Broadcasting Union (EBU), Eurovision's organizer, "based on the rules of the event and the values of the EBU."
Underlining that the EBU is "apolitical," the online statement said that before the decision, it had consulted its membership.
Russia’s military intervention in Ukraine entered its second day on Friday, with the latest reports indicating that Russian troops were heading toward the capital Kyiv from several directions.
Russian President Vladimir Putin had ordered the military intervention on Thursday, just days after recognizing two separatist-held enclaves in eastern Ukraine.
He claimed that Moscow had no plan to occupy the neighboring country, but wanted to “demilitarize” and “denazify” Ukraine.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy accused Russia of trying to install a puppet government and said Ukrainians will defend their country against Russian aggression.
