Russia said it had filed a fresh protest with Italy over the cancellation of a concert by Russian conductor Valery Gergiev, a known supporter of Vladimir Putin, Reuters reported.
The concert, which was scheduled for July near Naples, was canceled after a public outcry. Critics of the concert included the widow of Russian dissident Alexei Navalny, who called Gergiev a “disciple” of Putin. Italy’s culture minister said the concert risked becoming a mouthpiece for Russian propaganda.
Moscow filed its first protest on the 23rd of July, accusing Italy of discrimination, promoting a “cancel culture” and engaging in anti-Russian rhetoric.
On the 7th of August, the Russian Foreign Ministry announced that it had summoned the Italian diplomatic representative on the 5th of August to officially complain about “anti-Russian actions” in Italy, which are deepening the crisis in relations between the two countries. The ministry said that
Italy had inadequately responded to some odious statements directed against Moscow by high-ranking Italian officials.
The Italian media had allegedly published fake news and made Russophobic attacks with the full support of the Italian ruling circles. However, the ministry did not support these allegations with evidence.
The canceled concert highlights Russia’s fury at the shunning of its artists after Moscow’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
Gergiev has conducted the world’s most famous orchestras, but since February 2022 he has no longer been a welcome guest in Western countries. Given Gergiev’s failure to condemn the war, Milan’s La Scala, the Munich Philharmonic and New York’s Carnegie Hall have severed ties with him. The conductor currently conducts the Bolshoi Theatre in Moscow and the Mariinsky Theatre in St. Petersburg.
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