Preparations for the Eurovision song contest to be hosted by Kyiv in 2017 are being financed in full and there are no reasons for the relocation of this event to another country, Ukrainian Finance Minister Oleksandr Danyliuk has said.
“Some media are circulating information about the alleged relocation of Eurovision from Ukraine to Russia in connection with alleged financing problems… This is absolutely fake information. The government has done its best to ensure the full financing of the event: Hr 430 million has been provided in guarantees, and the 2017 budget foresees Hr 455.7 million,” the minister wrote on Facebook on Dec. 6.
What is more, the city of Kyiv as the winner of a host city selection contest has already been given Hr 50 million this year, and another Hr 150 million will be given the next year, the minister said.
“Thus we’ve ensured the financing of Eurovision in full. What is more, necessary preparations are ensured by the organizing committee headed by Culture Minister Yevhen Nyshchuk,” Danyliuk said.
Germany’s Bild magazine earlier wrote that the organizing committee of the song contest did not rule out that the event could be relocated to Moscow in connection with problematic preparations in Ukraine.
On Dec. 4, the Eurovision organizer, the European Broadcasting Union (EBU), refuted the report on the relocation.
Ukrainian Prime Minister Volodymyr Groysman has given assurances the Ukrainian government will not allow any failures during the song contest in 2017.
