On 25 June, the Moldovan Ministry of Culture published a list of performers from the Commonwealth of Independent States whose performances in the country could ‘pose a risk to national security’.
The list includes the Russian bands ‘Leningrad’, ‘Nochnie Snaipery’, t.A.T.u. and ‘Ruki Vverh’, as well as the artists Leonid Agutin, Dmitry Malikov, Alexander Serov, Igor Nikolaev, Irina Krug, Lucia Chebotina, Klava Koka, Egor Creed, Diana Arbenina, rappers Basta, Guf and DJ Smash, comedian Nurlan Saburov, as well as musicians Akmal Khodzhaniyazov, Yuri Kasparian and Igor Vdovin.
The ministry stated that there is no ban on performances by these artists. However, organisers who invite anyone from the list will have to bear responsibility for the ‘possible consequences’ themselves. Furthermore, such artists may be refused entry to Moldova.
“The Ministry of Culture does not prohibit the organisation of cultural events and does not restrict international cooperation. The aim of this measure is to prevent situations in which cultural and artistic events could pose a security threat to the Republic of Moldova,” the statement reads.
As noted by the ‘Nastoyashchee Vremya’ channel, in February, Moldova’s Ministry of Culture issued a circular requesting advance notification of invitations to foreign performers – particularly from CIS countries and states “condemned by the international community for armed aggression”.
The mechanism was first applied in April: the Ministry of Culture declared concerts by Diana Arbenina, Nurlan Saburov and the Ukrainian singer Oleg Vinnik to be undesirable. In May, Renato Usatyi, leader of the ‘Our Party’ party, requested approval for a list of 17 artists for a graduates’ festival – the ministry approved only four.