Last week, the heads of the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) announced their decision to oust Russia from Eurovision 2022, in light of the invasion of Ukraine.
This decision is a precedent, as so far there has been no case in which a state is deposed against its will, following a war it is waging against another state.
Many will say that this is a right, considered and fair decision, since a competition created after World War II, to mend the rifts and fractures left by that war between the various European countries, can not be used as a platform for countries to choose to use war as a solution to conflict.
It would not be an exaggeration to assume that in the event of another military operation in Gaza, we might find ourselves outside.
Russia's representative Dima Bilan, winner of Eurovision 2008, Photo: REUTERS
But not everything is black and white.
Morally it may be the right thing to do, but at the same time it must be acknowledged that this is a dangerous precedent and a slippery slope that the singing competition has entered.
Mixing politics in competition so blatantly means that competition is not only a singing competition, but also a competition whose politics are part of its DNA.
The union itself has stated, after the start of operational activities in Ukraine, that it will welcome the participation of any representative on behalf of Russia selected for Eurovision 2022. If so, why exactly the same reason two days later turned the bowl on its head?
The answer can be found in the announcements of the associations of participating countries.
Countries: Finland, Estonia, the Netherlands, Lithuania, Iceland and others have stated that they will withdraw from the competition if the union does not oust Russia.
And why is this supposed to interest and worry us Israelis?
Because it is not far off today that Israel may also find itself ousted from competition in disgrace in light of military operations and wars we are waging against our neighbors.
And despite the great differences, for European decision-makers, war is war, and in the balance of power of strong versus weak, aggressor versus victim, we may be perceived as more similar to Russia than to Ukraine, and accordingly - to be ousted from competition.
And this is not just a hypothesis.
As early as 2019, when Israel hosted the Eurovision Song Contest, there were elements who called for not allowing the Eurovision Song Contest in Israel in light of the situation in Gaza and the ongoing conflict with the Palestinians.
So, the EBU outright rejected this option, but now, given the precedent with Russia, it would not be an exaggeration to assume that in the event of another military operation in Gaza, we might find ourselves outside.
The author is a media consultant and Eurovision expert
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