SEOUL, March 15. /TASS/. The Russian Embassy in the Republic of Korea has slammed the concerted campaign by the EU and Ukraine to cancel a long-scheduled performance of Bolshoi Theater prima ballerina Svetlana Zakharova in Seoul as "politicized obscurantism," according to a statement by the diplomatic mission.
On Friday, InArts Production and the Seoul Center for the Arts announced that they had decided to cancel the Modanse program "taking into account concerns about the safety of performers and spectators." The embassy expressed regret over the cancellation. "At the same time, the unscrupulous campaign launched by diplomatic representatives of a number of third countries accredited in South Korea to discredit the upcoming concerts of the Russian ballet with inappropriate demands to stop cultural exchanges with Russia have come to the fore of public attention," the statement said.
"We are convinced that such politicized obscurantism, which is unfortunately widespread in many Western countries, should have no place in the modern world," the diplomats added.
The embassy stressed that cultural cooperation between the two countries should not become "hostage to political games." "We express our sincere sympathy to the South Korean audience, who were looking forward to this event, who were deprived of the opportunity to come into contact with great art, to see the performance of world-famous representatives of the Russian school of ballet," the diplomatic mission said.
The diplomats indicated that they had no information about the grounds for the cancellation, except for the information previously published by the organizers. They stressed that the project had been initiated by a private company and the Seoul Center for the Arts without the participation of government agencies.
Ukraine’s demands
In early March, the Embassy of Ukraine in the Republic of Korea demanded the cancellation of "cultural cooperation" with Russia and Russian cultural figures. The EU delegation in Seoul voiced its support for Ukraine's demands.
The Russian Embassy in Seoul called attempts by Ukrainian and European diplomats to disrupt the performance featuring Svetlana Zakharova, prima ballerina of the Bolshoi Theater, unexpectedly tactless. The South Korean Foreign Ministry said that private organizations were sponsoring the tour.