ROME: The Venice Biennale would undermine its autonomy and freedom of expression if it bowed to European Union pressure to shut Russia out of its events, the foundation’s chairman said on Thursday, criticizing the EU’s recent decision to cut funding. Earlier this week, the EU said it had decided to withdraw a €2 million ($2.3 million) grant in response to the return of Russia to the Biennale’s arts exhibition this year for the first time since the 2022 invasion of Ukraine.

The EU has cancelled a €2 million grant to the Venice Biennale following the reopening of the Russian pavilion.

The European Union said Tuesday that it had definitively cancelled a two million euro ($2.3 million) grant to the Venice Biennale over Russia's presence at the world's biggest…