Italy's Foreign Minister called Russia's return to the Venice Biennale short-sighted
Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani criticized the decision to allow Russian artists to participate in the 2026 Venice Biennale, calling it “extremely short-sighted.” He made this statement on the sidelines of an event in Verona, according to “European Truth.”
Tajani was commenting on the process to revoke a 2 million euro European Union grant, which was initiated due to the decision to reopen the Russian pavilion at the exhibition. According to the Italian minister, the participation of Russian artists in the Biennale “certainly causes immense, immense surprise.”
The Russian Federation is an aggressor state which, according to Tajani, violated international law by attacking Ukraine. The minister also stated that Russia has caused the deaths of hundreds of thousands of people on both sides. He mentioned the expulsion of two spies who, he said, were caught red-handed while attempting to bribe two Italians, as well as cyberattacks that, as Tajani emphasized, are being carried out by Russia.
In July, the European Commission recommended that the Education and Culture Executive Agency suspend its grant to the Venice Biennale. The procedure was initiated following a statement by the president of the Biennale Foundation, Pietrangelo Buttafuoco, who confirmed that the Russian pavilion would reopen for the first time since the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
In the first stage, the European Commission gave the Biennale Foundation 30 days to either abandon these plans or provide arguments that could halt the procedure to revoke the grant. Subsequently, the European Union requested additional official clarifications regarding the nature of Russia’s participation in the event.
