Earlier today, media reports in Ukraine revealed that debts owed to Euronews had put broadcaster UA:PBC in deep financial trouble with a looming possibility of UA:PBC ceasing to exist. As a result, preparations for the 2020 Eurovision Song Contest and 2020 Olympic Games were being affected. Now, a Ukrainian government minister has pledged to “ensure the sustainability” of UA:PBC.
Statement by Volodymyr Borodyansky
In response to the media reports and statement by UA:PBC’s representatives, the Ukrainian Government Minister for Culture, Youth and Sports, Volodymyr Borodyansky made the following statement on Telegram earlier today. The following statement is translated into English by Google Translate so there may be some grammatical errors:
The situation regarding a possible shutdown of UA:PBC due to the amassed debts is unacceptable. The public broadcaster did not provide funds for debt repayment in the budget.
In order to avoid the situation of a possible termination in broadcasting, the Ministry for Culture, Youth and Sports (MKMC) and the Ministry of Finance decided to approach the financing so that UA:PBC could have an opportunity to settle its debts immediately.
Now, the amount of money frozen in accounts in Switzerland will be returned to the budget and the MKMC will initiate changes to the government budget to increase UA:PBC financing … to ensure the sustainability of UA:PBC.
Volodymyr Borodyansky
Go_A’s journey to Rotterdam now safe?
The finer details of exactly what the Ukrainian government is pledging aren’t totally clear and therefore we can not yet be sure Ukraine’s Eurovision 2020 participation will be unaffected. Nevertheless, Borodyansky’s words suggest that the Ukrainian government does not intend to allow UA:PBC to go off air and will ensure that the broadcaster will have a sustainable future.
Are you pleased that Ukraine’s fortunes seem to be heading in the right direction? Let us know @ESCXTRA!
