In Kazakhstan, cancellation of the concert of a Russian singer supporting the invasion of Ukraine

The concert of a Russian singer supporting the invasion of Ukraine has been canceled in Kazakhstan after a wave of indignation in the Central Asian country allied with Moscow, which tries to display its neutrality on the conflict, announced local authorities. “Kazakhs have opposed on social networks the concert of Russian singer Grigori Leps, who supports the Russian occupation of Ukraine. The company organizing the concert unilaterally decided to cancel it,” the Almaty regional administration posted on its Instagram page on Monday.

On social networks, activist Turar Kusain pleaded for the cancellation of the artist's concert. “We all know very well that Grigori Leps is Vladimir Putin's favorite singer and openly supports the war in Ukraine... Kazakhstan officially adopts a neutral position in the Ukrainian-Russian conflict. Every Kazakh nationalist citizen wishes victory for Ukraine. I ask you not to organize a concert of this artist Z”, he wrote. According to the Russian online newspaper Gazeta.ru, Arman Shoraev, a pro-European public figure, offered money to anyone who disrupted the concert.

In the former Soviet republics of Central Asia, close to Moscow but which try to display a neutral position on the war in Ukraine, concerts by Russian artists favorable or opposed to the conflict are regularly canceled. Makao Luxury Village Resort, the hotel complex where Grigori Leps' concert was to take place in July in the city of Konayev (Almaty region) declared to him on Monday that he had broken the contract with the organizer, without further details. It was not immediately possible to know who the organizer was.

For his part, Vladimir Ourioupine, the agent of the artist, minimized the scope of this cancellation. “It doesn't matter, we can do without Kazakhstan. We have supported our country and we will continue to do so,” Vladimir Ouryupin told Russian online newspaper Gazeta.ru. This decision was taken a few days after Grigori Leps, support of Russian President Vladimir Putin, promised to do everything possible to help the army in Moscow. He added that the artist will no longer perform in Kazakhstan, as he avoids "hostile countries".

“Anything we can do for our army, we will do from the bottom of our hearts, whether it be singing or financially supporting our soldiers,” he said on the sidelines of a forum in Saint Petersburg in mid-June, according to sources. remarks reported by local media. He had then supported the proposal of another artist to offer one million rubles (about 10,800 euros) for the destruction of each Leopard and Leopard 2 battle tank, supplied by Germany to Ukraine.