Concert by Putin ally Gergiev cancelled in Italy

The organisers of a music festival in Italy have cancelled a concert featuring Russian conductor Valery Gergiev after days of criticism from Kremlin critics and human rights campaigners.

Gergiev, an ally of President Putin, was due to lead an Italian orchestra and soloists from St Petersburg's Mariinsky Theatre in a performance at a former royal palace near Naples later this month.

The 72 year old has been barred from Western stages since the Russian invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, which he has refused to condemn.

Italian Culture Minister Alessandro Giuli said the cancellation by the organisers of the Un'Estate da RE festival was "common sense" and protected the "values of the free world".

The Royal Palace of Caserta gave no official reason for cancelling the concert on 27 July, which was being staged as part of the wider music programme.

Ukraine on Sunday had urged organisers to drop Gergiev's performance, calling him "Putin's mouthpiece" who should not be welcomed anywhere "as long as Russian forces continue to commit atrocities".

Yulia Navalnaya, the widow of late Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny, welcomed the cancellation, describing it as "good news", in a post on X.

"No artist who supports the current dictatorship in Russia should be welcomed in Europe," she said.

But Moscow's ambassador to Italy said the decision was a "scandalous situation" and part of a "policy of 'cancelling' Russian culture".

Gergiev, the director of the Bolshoi and Mariinsky Russian state theatres, regularly played in leading Western venues before the invasion of Ukraine.

Institutions, including Milan's La Scala, the Munich Philharmonic Orchestra and New York's Carnegie Hall later severed ties with him.

The controversy over Gergiev's appearance emerged last week when Italy was hosting heads of state from all over Europe to reaffirm their support for Ukraine and discuss how to rebuild the country once the war is over.

Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni has been a strong and consistent critic of Vladimir Putin from the start. But her culture ministry was one of the backers of the Un'Estate da RE festival.