MOSCOW – Yulia Samoilova will represent Russia at the Eurovision Song Contest in 2018, Channel One general director Konstantin Ernst said.
“We have discussed it with the European Broadcasting Union, and they know that Russia’s contestant will be Yulia Samoilova,” he said on April 14 after being asked whether Russia could encounter any problems due to its refusal to broadcast this year’s contest.
When speaking about this year’s contest, Ernst said that “it is the choice of the European Broadcasting Union because it is the organizer of the contest.”
“It seems to me that they should keep an eye primarily on compliance with the rules, which are unlikely to envisage that the side hosting the contest can introduce restrictions on participation,” he said.
The Russian television Channel One announced on April 13 that it would not be broadcasting this year’s Eurovision Song Contest because of the Ukrainian authorities’ refusal to let the Russian singer Samoilova take part in the contest.
