Authorities in the Italian city of Modena on Tuesday blocked the use of a public hall for a private event about the “reconstruction” of the Ukrainian city of Mariupol, saying it “looked like” open support for Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, Reuters reported.

Mariupol has been the scene of some of the fiercest fighting since the Russian invasion began in February 2022, when it was almost completely destroyed in a siege that made headlines around the world thanks to the desperate efforts of the Azov Regiment and Ukrainian marines to defend the port city from Sea of ​​Azov.

The conference, which was to be held in Modena, was called “Mariupol. Revival after the war”, financed by the Russian Cultural Association of the Emilia-Romagna region. According to the official description, the purpose of the event is to illustrate the reconstruction of the city.

In fact, even Russian President Vladimir Putin visited Mariupol last March to draw attention to it.

Among the guests of the event in Modena was the Consul General of Russia in Milan, Dmytro Stodin, according to the website of the organizers.

The Italian authorities are talking about the emergence of “new information” regarding the event

However, Modena’s local council announced on Tuesday that it had withdrawn its consent to use the public hall for a conference planned for January 20, citing “new information”.

He added in a press release that the list of speakers at the event appears to be inconsistent with the authorities’ commitment not to promote fascist and racist ideologies and violates Italy’s commitment to promote peace and international relations.

Ambassador of Ukraine to Italy Yaroslav Melnyk said that the organization of this event is a “public insult to the memory of thousands of peaceful victims” who died in Mariupol.

After the announcement of the revocation of the permission to hold the event in the public hall, the Embassy of Ukraine in Rome reported on the “X” social network that this event “protects the community from the spread of Russian propaganda in Italy.”

The Russian Embassy in Rome and the Russian Cultural Association of Emilia-Romagna did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Oleksandr Dugin was also invited to perform in Italy

But the Reuters agency notes that the number of public events of a pro-Russian nature is increasing in Italy. Lawmaker Leah Quartapelle, a member of the center-left Democratic Party, recently warned of a “cultural offensive of pro-Putin associations.”

“Italy is on the side of the freedom of Ukraine,” she emphasized in a message shared on “X”.

On Monday, the Italian-Russian organization Vento dell’Est announced that it would postpone another conference, in which the Russian ideologue Oleksandr Dugin would take part, because the hall where it was supposed to take place became unavailable.

The event called “Towards a New Multipolar World” was to be held on January 27 at the Grand Hotel Guinigi in the Tuscan city of Lucca.

“Our lawyer is considering the request for compensation,” Vento dell’Est said in a message posted on the Telegram channel.

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