Roger Waters ‘persona non grata’ in Polish city

WARSAW

The Polish city of Krakow on Wednesday declared Pink Floyd’s Roger Waters a “persona non grata” over his stance on the Ukraine war, days after his concerts there were scrapped because of the row.

“We do not want people in Krakow who take Russia’s side in the information war and support or repeat [Russian President Vladimir] Putin’s propaganda,” city council vice president Michal Drewnicki said on Twitter.

He added that the council was unanimous in its decision to declare the British musician a “persona non grata.” The motion is not legally binding.

Waters wrote an open letter earlier this month saying the West should stop providing arms to Kiew, accusing President Volodymyr Zelensky of allowing “extreme nationalism” in Ukraine and urging him to “put an end to this deadly war”.

Ukrainian First Lady Olena Zelenska hit back on Twitter, telling Waters: “you’d better ask the Russian Federation’s president for peace. Not Ukraine.”

Waters had been scheduled to perform two concerts at Krakow’s Tauron Arena in April 2023. But on Sept. 24, Live Nation Polska tweeted that the shows had been “canceled,” without providing details.

Waters on Facebook denied Polish media reports that his team had pulled out.