OREANDA-NEWS  In Russia, it was proposed to create a domestic analogue of the Eurovision song contest called "Intervision". This was stated by the Minister of Culture of Russia Olga Lyubimova. Her words are quoted by Interfax.

"There will be no political restrictions and influences in this competition, it is a free platform where all countries can present samples of their popular music. We count on the active participation of the BRICS countries (Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa) and invite all other countries to join this initiative," the Telegram channel Varlamov News, owned by blogger Ilya Varlamov (entered by the Ministry of Justice in the register of foreign agents) quotes the Director General of Channel One Konstantin Ernst.

In April, State Duma deputy Sergei Kolunov proposed creating a Russian equivalent of Eurovision with contestants only from friendly countries. In his opinion, the songs should be performed exclusively in Russian, so as not to "once again broadcast" music in English.

In 2022, Russia was banned from participating in Eurovision. This decision was made in connection with the conflict in Ukraine. The organizer of the event, Martin Esterdahl, admitted that the decision to exclude Russia from the list of contestants was not easy for the leadership.