Mediaset CEO Pier Silvio Berlusconi has given his verdict on an upcoming video appearance by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky at Italy’s iconic Sanremo song festival, adding fuel to an ongoing political debate around the operation.
Speaking at a press conference for Mediaset results on Thursday, Berlusconi said he did not feel the festival, celebrating Italian song, was the right place for such an address.
The TV exec and entrepreneur is the son of Italian media tycoon and politician Silvio Berlusconi, who has described himself as one of Russian President Vladimir Putin’s closest friends.
Zelensky has made video addresses at a raft of cultural and entertainment events since the beginning of the Russian invasion of Ukraine on February 24, 2022, including the Cannes and Venice films festivals, the Golden Globes and U.K.’s Glastonbury music festival.
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