“We honestly won Eurovision, so we ask that negotiations for the next edition be resumed in Ukraine.” The Ukrainian Minister of Culture and Information is responding to the statement by the European Broadcasting Union (Ebu), which Zelenskyy’s country recently announced Hours with a widespread note as ‘unable’ to meet a broadcaster’s operational guarantees and security requirements Host of the Eurovision Song Contest ». Minister Oleksandr Tkachenko clearly defined Ukraine, “in total rejection of such a decision”, mainly because “the country was presented with a fait accompli without being able to discuss the possibility of other options”.
Tkačenko’s response on Facebook continues: «We believe that we have every reason to continue negotiations in order to find a common solution that satisfies all parties. We honestly won Eurovision 2022 and so far we have met all the conditions within the given deadlines, given answers and guarantees on safety standards and eventual venues for the competition ». The Minister of Culture then reiterated the symbolic value of an international event in Ukraine at precisely this historic moment: “Eurovision 2023 in Ukraine is a strong signal to the whole world that supports us. We will ask to change the decision and further negotiations: we are confident that we will be able to honor all the commitments made and repeatedly underlined by the EBU ».
The day after the Kalush Orchestra’s victory on the Turin stage, President of Ukraine Zelensky himself spoke about the next edition: “Next year Ukraine will host Eurovision for the third time in its history. And I think not the last. We will do everything possible so that Mariupol can be the host city ». The same city devastated by the Russian invasion for which the Ukrainian artists asked for “liberation” during the performance of the winning play Stefania.