Geopolitics Looms Over Eurovision, but Not Its Asian Edition

Geopolitics have long intruded on the Eurovision Song Contest. But they were not really a factor as the event prepared to expand into Asia for the first time . That was still true as of Saturday evening, as the inaugural Eurovision Song Contest Asia was about to start in Bangkok. Over the decades, Eurovision organizers have insisted that the contest is nonpolitical.

Its organizers impose rules governing lyrics, political symbols and what can be broadcast. Even so, wars and diplomatic disputes have shaped who gets to sing, who stays home and what broadcasters are willing to air. In 2009, less than a year after fighting a war with Russia, the former Soviet republic of Georgia planned to send a disco song called “We Don’t Wanna Put In” to Eurovision. Eurovision’s organizers said that the apparent dig at Vladimir Putin, then Russia’s prime minister, had to go.

Georgia pulled out instead of changing it. In 2017, Russia pulled out of the contest in Kyiv after Ukraine barred its singer from entering the country.