The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine strongly condemned the plans of the Swiss Zurich Film Festival to include the documentary film "Russians at War" in its program. The agency's statement emphasized that such actions are an attempt to provide Russia with a cultural stage to whitewash its war crimes, while Russian forces continue to commit atrocities against Ukrainians.
"The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine strongly condemns any attempt to provide Russia with a cultural platform to promote its crimes. As long as Russian troops commit brutal crimes on the territory of Ukraine, there can be no question of cultural legalization of their propaganda," the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement.
The agency emphasized that Russian propaganda covered by cultural products has no place on the international cultural stage and red carpets. The Ministry also stated that it will continue to advocate the isolation of the aggressor country in the cultural sphere and others.
This protest is taking place against the background of other international cultural events. Recently, on September 18, pro-Ukrainian protests took place under the walls of the largest hall of the Lightbox International Film Festival (TIFF) in Toronto due to the decision to show the film "Russians at War" by Russian director Anastasia Trofimova. The film was also shown at the Venice Film Festival, which caused outrage among the Ukrainian and international community.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine emphasized that cultural initiatives that support Russian propaganda should not be part of international cultural events, and countries should pay attention to such problems, supporting Ukraine in the fight against the aggressor.
