The General Director of the Metropolitan Opera demands to cancel the performance of Putin's friend in Italy

According to glavcom.ua: The General Director of the Metropolitan Opera, Peter Gelb, expressed his outrage regarding the scheduled performance of Russian conductor Valery Gergiev in Italy. He called for the cancellation of this performance, viewing it as part of Putin's propaganda. Gelb emphasized that Gergiev is an instrument of the Russian president and considers entering into a contract with him to be moral corruption.

“I am very surprised. Especially in light of the fact that the Prime Minister of Italy, Giorgia Meloni, firmly supports Ukraine. This would be a fatal signal because Gergiev is an instrument of Putin. There is no doubt about that. When local officials claim this is a cultural exchange, even if indirectly financed by EU funds, while the alliance opposes Russia, I can only reiterate: this is cultural propaganda on behalf of Putin. And it must be stopped. As we have heard, the European Parliament seems to share similar views,” Gelb summarized.

It should be noted that Gergiev's scheduled performance in Italy has caused outrage among politicians and public figures who view it as part of Russian cultural propaganda. The General Director of the Metropolitan Opera believes that collaborating with the conductor is not only morally unacceptable but also dangerous in terms of public opinion and international relations.