Great Russian culture can't be cancelled says Mattarella

(ANSA) - ROME, DEC 7 - Great Russian culture cannot be cancelled no matter what wars its leaders embark on, President Sergio Mattarella said ahead of the La Scala Premiere of Boris Godunov Wednesday, where he was given a standing ovation by the public.
    Speaking at a dinner with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen before the premiere, the Italian head of State gave his views on a row about putting on a Russian opera amid the Ukraine war and potentially handing a propaganda victory to Russian President Vladimir Putin.
    "These are views I do not share both on the cultural and political level," said Mattarella.
    "Great Russian culture is an integral part of European culture.
    "It is an element that cannot be cancelled.
    "While the responsibility for that war must be attributed to the government of that country and certainly not to the Russian people or to its culture".
    Boris Godunov is an opera by Russian composer Modest Mussorgsky.
    The work was composed between 1868 and 1873 in Saint Petersburg.
    It is Mussorgsky's only completed opera and is considered his masterpiece. (ANSA).