Estonia suspends cultural co-operation with Russia

Text Timo Huttunen
Photo Visit Estonia / Mart Vares

The Estonian Ministry of Culture has suspended state cultural co-operation with Russia for the next three years. 

Minister of Culture Tiit Terik said that due to the termination of the cultural agreement, future plans with Russia will be suspended, and funding will also be withdrawn from projects.

“Many of the cultural events we have wanted to keep separate from politics will be left without state funding,” Terik said.

Withdrawal from cultural co-operation means that Estonia will not implement the 2022–2024 co-operation program with Russia. The program under preparation would have created a basis for cultural co-operation and also made it possible to finance cultural activities from the state budget.

“In previous years, we have supported the arrival of Russian groups to the Saaremaa Opera Days and the Birgitta Festival. Due to the shocking events at the moment, the co-operation cannot continue, ”Terik explained.

“We don’t want to put Russian artists in an embarrassing situation where they come here to perform at the same time as their state leadership commits war crimes,” Tiit Terik continued.

Terik emphasized that if cultural institutions or sports organizations want to do joint projects with Russia or Belarus, they have the freedom to decide for themselves in Estonia. In such cases, however, Estonian state support can no longer be relied upon.

Source ERR

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Birgitta Festival Cultural Co-operation Cultural Events Estonia Estonian Culture Estonian Ministry of Culture Russia Saaremaa Opera Days Tiit Terik