Italian authorities ban Russians living in the country from holding an exhibition about the "revival of Mariupol"

The authorities of the Italian city of Modena have banned a Russian organization from using the premises it owns to hold an exhibition and conference entitled "Mariupol. Revival after the war".

The event was scheduled to take place on January 20, organized by the so-called "Cultural Association "Russia Emilia-Romagna", and was to be attended, among others, by Russian Consul General in Milan Dmitry Stodin.

The Ukrainian government strongly condemned the exhibition and called on the Italian authorities to cancel it.

"The exhibition in Modena about the 'heyday' of Mariupol under Russian occupation is a provocation," Ukrainian Foreign Ministry spokesman Oleh Nikolenko told. "At the official level, Italy strongly supports the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine. And we expect a corresponding reaction to this propaganda event."

According to Reuters, on Tuesday, the local council of Modena revoked the permission to hold the conference "after new information emerged".

According to a statement by the city authorities, the composition of the event's participants does not comply with the policy of banning the propaganda of fascist and racist ideology and contradicts the principles of peace and international relations to which Italy adheres, Reuters writes.

It has not yet been reported whether the conference is planned to be held in another venue.

"I thank both the city hall and Ukrainians in Italy who did not allow the Italian society to be deceived about the consequences of Russian crimes in Mariupol and Ukraine," Modena Nikolenko wrote on Facebook in connection with the decision of the authorities.

In the first months of Russia's invasion of Ukraine, the Russian army captured Mariupol, and a large part of the city was destroyed during the fighting. In particular, Russian troops widely used heavy bombs and artillery in the city.

Reuters notes that a number of other pro-Russian events have been planned in Italy recently. According to the agency, on Monday, representatives of the pro-Russian Italian organization Vento dell'Est announced the postponement of a conference with the participation of Alexander Dugin, a Russian ultranationalist philosopher and one of the ideologues of the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

According to the Italian press, Dugin was planning to participate in the conference remotely: he is on the EU sanctions list.

The organizers of the event, which was to take place on January 27 in Lucca, were also denied a venue.