Gert Kark on the return of Russia / Collage of Channel 24
Eurovision Executive Producer Geert Kark has spoken out about the political debate. He answered whether Russia can participate in the contest again.
Gert Kark emphasized in an interview with the Estonian public broadcaster that Russia cannot return to Eurovision. He gave a clear answer, ERR reports.
Russian broadcasters are not members of the European Broadcasting Union or have been expelled from it. So definitely no – they will not return,
– the producer said.
Geert Kark also spoke about the discussions surrounding Israel's participation in Eurovision. He decided not to take a position on the issue. But he noted that the EBU always has plans in case the winning country is unable to host the contest next year.
“Fortunately, I don't have to deal with politics at all. I work with the people I'm assigned to work with. To be honest, I've never voted in my life and I'm not interested in it at all. I always answer like this: I'm Estonian, I have to worry about Putin anyway, so why should I interfere in someone else's conflict?” – shared Gert Kark.
Why did there appear talks about the return of Russia?
Eurovision Director Martin Green explained on the eve of the final that the broadcasting union excluded Russia allegedly not because of the war. The reason was that their broadcasting company was not independent and probably had ties to the Kremlin.
Martin Green said Russia could “theoretically” return to the contest if its broadcaster complied with the rules. He was criticized for this.
The Eurovision director later said that his words had been misinterpreted. He made it clear that there were no plans to bring the Russian broadcaster back to the contest.