Ukraine condemns Russia's return to Venice Biennale, calling it 'normalization of genocidal policy'
Ukraine condemned on March 8 Russia's impending return to the Venice Biennale, saying that it sends "a dangerous signal of support for aggression, tolerance of Russian war crimes, and the normalization of the Russian occupiers' genocidal policy."
The Art Biennale, one of the largest and most prestigious cultural events in the world, will take place from May 9. Russia will participate for the first time since 2022, when it was effectively canceled after chosen participants dropped out in protest against Russia's war in Ukraine.
A statement against Russia's return, released jointly by the Culture and Foreign Ministries, referenced Russia's attacks against Ukrainian cultural heritage since the start of the invasion of Donetsk and Luhansk oblasts in 2014 and the full-scale war in 2022.
Three hundred forty-six artists and 123 Ukrainian and foreign media professionals have been killed by Russia since 2022, according to the Foreign Ministry. Additionally, 1,707 cultural heritage sites and 2,503 cultural infrastructure objects in Ukraine have been damaged or destroyed.
Both ministries also referenced Russia's centuries-long history of Russification policies imposed on the Ukrainian people.
"In this context," the statement reads, "any admission of Russian representatives to international art events is unacceptable."
"Adherence to the values of freedom, human dignity, and international law must be defining for the global artistic community, as must solidarity with the Ukrainian people whose culture is being targeted for destruction."
The Russian pavilion is led by commissioner Anastasia Karneeva, who was chosen for the role by Russia's Culture Ministry in 2021 for an eight-year term. It has been reported that Karneeva maintains personal and professional ties to Russia's military industrial complex.
