Ukraine President Zelenskyy will not address Eurovision Final audience

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy will not deliver a video address at Saturday’s Eurovision Final in Liverpool.

The European Broadcasting Union said that President Zelenskyy was prohibited from speaking due to “strict rules” about impartiality.
“One of the cornerstones of the contest is the non-political nature of the event,” the EBU said. “This principle prohibits the possibility of making political or similar statements as part of the contest.”

The contest was won last year by Ukraine’s entry, the Kalush Orchestra. Despite their victory, Ukraine was unable to host this year's Eurovision due to the ongoing conflict between Ukraine and Russia.

The EBU decided not to host the contest in Ukraine due to what it described as a “severe risk” of attacks from aircraft or missiles in the country.

The show is instead being hosted in the M&S Bank Arena in Liverpool, although there is expected to be strong Ukrainian themes throughout the show, and videos showcasing different parts of the war torn country.

Current British Prime Minister, Rishi Sunak, as well as former PM Boris Johnson, have both spoken out in favour of Zelenskyy addressing the Eurovision audience on Saturday evening.

Sunak’s spokesperson said: "The values and freedoms that President Zelensky and the people of Ukraine are fighting for are not political, they're fundamental, and Eurovision themselves recognised that last year when they rightly suspended Russia's participation from the competition."

Russia has been banned from the last two Eurovision Song Contests due to their illegal invasion of Ukrainian territory.

Boris Johnson, via twitter, said: “It would have been right to hear from President Zelenskyy at tomorrow night's Eurovision. There is only one reason the contest is not in Ukraine and that is because of Putin’s illegal war.”

Former Irish Eurovision contestants Jedward also had their say on the matter, contradicting themselves in criticising Rishi Sunak before agreeing Zelenskyy’s address would be “Powerful”.

Jedward react to the decision by Eurovision bosses to block Ukrainian's president from addressing the event.

They say a speech from Volodymyr Zelenskyy would be "powerful", adding that "people need to get a grip".

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Current favourites to win the contest are six time winners Sweden, with Ukraine currently third favourites according to bookies, behind Sweden and Finland. Sweden would go level with Ireland for most contest victories were they to come out victorious in Saturday’s grand final.

Ireland failed to qualify for the Final after being eliminated in Semi-Final 1 on Tuesday. Their entry, We Are One, by Wild Youth, failed to excite European audiences. Ireland have not qualified for the Final since 2018, when we finished 16th with Ryan O’Shaughnessy’s Together.