Russia's love affair with Eurovision reached a peak in 2008, when the singer Dima Bilan was crowned the winner of the competition.

Following Russia's ban from competing in Eurovision in 2022 after the country's invasion of Ukraine, President Vladimir Putin has ordered the return of Intervision, a Soviet-era singing competition that last took place more than 40 years ago.

VLADIMIR Putin has announced his own version of the Eurovision song contest despite Russia’s similar Soviet attempts being a huge flop. The bitter tyrant is set to take on the world famous

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,

The petition had garnered signatures of more than 100 people, including Finnish artists and actors, by Tuesday afternoon.

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.

According to RIA, the Russian news agency, after being excluded from Eurovision, Russia, led by Vladimir Putin, has decided to revive Intervision, a musical competition from the Soviet era. The goal is to promote Russian culture and unite countries sympathetic to Russia.

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.

According to Russian state media, Putin appointed Dmitry Chernyshenko, who led the organizing committee for the 2014 Sochi Olympics, as head of the supervisory board. Read also: Kremlin-linked analyst outlines Russia's demands for Ukraine in new interview Meanwhile,