“I think that while the war is going on, there should be such strict borders. I really support “Suspilne” in this, because this is pain of simply incredible proportions. The endless pain that this war has already brought. Endless losses,” said the artist. “Such rules and strict conditions so that finally people, it seems to me, understand. If you don’t want to volunteer, understand that this is an incredible value for us – our statehood, language, unity and principle position. Considering how much we survived and how much we didn’t.”
Topolya became the first artist in show business to publicly comment on the situation.
Who demands to change the rules
The initiator of changes to the rules of the Ukrainian national selection was the producer of the Ukrainian singer Olya Polyakova, Mikhail Yasinsky. Polyakova was the presenter of the award on the Russian propaganda channel Ru.TV in 2015.
On October 16, 2025, Polyakova stated that sent the song to the national selection and is waiting for a “fair decision” from the organizers. She added that the restrictions regarding artists who performed after 2014 in the aggressor country of the Russian Federation “have lost their meaning and violate the principles of equality.” October 21 “Suspilne” refused to change the rules.
On October 23, Yasinsky reported that sent to the European Broadcasting Union ( EBU) complaint against Suspilne. He added that another letter with an ultimatum was sent to Suspilny.
On December 11, the producer called publicly and urgently discuss changing the rules for participants of the Ukrainian national selection. “Suspilne” in its official response stated its readiness to discuss the relevance of the national selection rules after the end of Eurovision 2026.
What does Yasinsky require?
The producer insists on the need to abandon the automatic ban on artists participating in the national selection without taking into account the context. According to Yasinsky, the practice of previous years shows that individual decisions did not create systemic risks for Ukraine’s reputation at the competition.
Yasinsky’s team presented developed proposals for an alternative version of clause 4.6 of the national selection rules. They provide for the continuation of an unconditional ban on any cooperation with the aggressor state after February 24, 2022, as well as an individual assessment of activities before this date, taking into account the artist’s public position, financial transparency and the right to provide explanations. Yasinsky believes that the rules should be the same for everyone and comply with the Constitution of Ukraine and international standards.
“If the state recognized artists who worked in the Russian Federation after 2014 as worthy of state titles, then the question arises: why should strict but legally unclear restrictions prevent participation in a music competition? We are talking about honesty and the compliance of the rules with the principles that Ukraine declares,” he noted.
Context
Elena Topolya, under the pseudonym Alyosha, represented Ukraine at Eurovision in 2010, which took place in the Norwegian capital Oslo. She performed the song Sweet People and took 10th place.
