Vladimir Putin is looking to launch Russia’s own “macho” version of the Eurovision Song Contest.
Putin is expected to reboot the Soviet Union’s defunct Intervision song contest as an anti-woke rival to the contest run by the European Broadcasting Union.
Russia has won the Eurovision Song Contest once before, with Dima Bilan winning in 2008 with his song, Believe.
However, the country was thrown out of the contest in 2022 following the invasion of Ukraine, and has been barred from entering ever since.
Conchita Wurst won the contest in 2014, drawing the fury of Putin
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Dima Bilan of Russia performs during the final of the Eurovision Song Contest 2008
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Russian senator Liliya Gumerova told state media that Intervision would “promote real music” and “not fake values that are alien to any normal person”.
Swiss singer Nemo was crowned the first non-binary singer winner at last year’s contest, something which drew fury from the Kremlin.
Maria Zakharova, Russia’s foreign ministry spokeswoman, said: “surpassed any orgy, revelry or ritual sacrilege” adding that the competition as another “funeral” for Western Europe.
Russian politicians have been critical of the contest for including performers such as Austrian drag queen Conchita Wurst, who won in 2014 with her song Rise Like A Phoenix.
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Manizha of Russia poses during the opening ceremony of the 2021 Eurovision Song Contest, the last time Russia took part in the contest
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Swiss singer Nemo representing Switzerland with the song “The Code”
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Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Vladimirovna Zakharova
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The Intervision contest will take place later this year, organised under the eye of Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Chernyshenko.
The Kremlin said almost 20 countries are ready to take part in the contest, including all the members of the Brics and CIS blocs.
China, India and Brazil, which have not joined the Western sanctions against Moscow, would be involved in the contest.
North Korea, whose soldiers are being forced to fight in Ukraine, already competes in the Own Asiavision Song Contest.
Italian rock band Måneskin winning the 2021 Eurovision contest
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ABBA celebrate after winning the Swedish branch of the Eurovision Song Contest with their song “Waterloo”
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The first series of Intervision, officially titled the Golden Clef Intervision Contest, ran for three years from 1965 in Czechoslovakia.
The rules of that show were modelled on Eurovision and even included entries from Eurovision members such as Austria, Belgium, and Finland in 1968.
It was taken off air following the Soviet-led invasion of Czechoslovakia in August 1968.
