European Commission withdraws €2 million grant from Venice Biennale

The European Commission, through the European Education and Culture Executive Agency, decided on Tuesday, July 21, to end the €2 million grant it provides to the foundation running the Venice Biennale. This decision followed a legal analysis and recommendation by the Commission and is attributed to Russia's return to the festival.

Russia had withdrawn from the event months before its 2022 edition, shortly after its military invasion of Ukraine. This year, the Russian Federation managed to regain admission and present a pavilion, thanks to an initiative by Pietrangelo Buttafuoco, the institution's president. Buttafuoco was appointed by Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni's government in 2023, a move that also fueled controversy in Italy.

The Biennale's management stated in a press release at the end of April that the festival "seeks to be – and must remain – a place of truce in the name of art, culture and artistic freedom." This argument was not well-received in Brussels.