Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a decree on Feb. 3 ordering the revival of the Intervision song contest, the Soviet Union's equivalent to Eurovision. The Eurovision Song Contest banned Russia from participation in 2022 following the full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

Russian President Vladimir Putin has ordered a revival of the Soviet-era alternative to the Eurovision Song Contest, Intervision, which he claimed will counter the decadence of modern Western culture. Mr Putin signed the decree on Monday, ordering the Intervision Song Contest be held in Moscow this year.

Russian President Vladimir Putin has ordered a revival of the Soviet answer to the Eurovision Song Contest in an effort to counter what he says is the decadence of modern Western culture. Putin signed a decree on Monday for the Intervision Song Contest to be held in Moscow this year,

Eurovision move out of the way, because Vladimir Putin is set to stage his very own anti-Western international song contest. The rival event – called Intervision – previously ran in Russia between 1965 and 1968 and then later between 1977 and 1980 but was a flop.

Intervision has its roots in the 1960s and 1970s when it took place in Czechoslovakia and replaced the International Song Festival in Sopot. The contemporary edition holds particular significance following Russia's exclusion from Eurovision.