The controversial documentary "Russians at War" will be shown at the Zurich Film Festival (ZFF) next month despite harsh criticism from Kyiv, the event's director said Thursday.
The documentary has sparked outrage since it was first shown at the major Venice film festival earlier this month, with some calling it a pro-Kremlin film that seeks to whitewash and justify Moscow's assault on its neighbour.
Ukraine added Russian-Canadian filmmaker Anastasia Trofimova, who directed the documentary, to a national security blacklist on Monday, saying it spread "Russian propaganda" about Moscow's invasion.
The documentary was listed on the programme for the Swiss festival, which was sent out to media on Thursday, as a film portraying "Russian frontline soldiers in Ukraine (dealing) with the fragility of democracy".
"We understand that Ukrainians are unhappy," but the film will be screened as scheduled, ZFF director Christian Jungen told a press conference in Zurich, according to the Keystone-ATS news agency.
He stressed that "films should incite discussion", adding that he considered the documentary an "anti-war film".
A spokesman for the Ukrainian foreign ministry warned the ZFF organisers Thursday that they risked ruining the festival's reputation by going ahead with the screening.
"This is a propaganda film that whitewashes war crimes, not a documentary," Georgil Tykhyi said on X, formerly Twitter.
"Real Russians at war are invaders, war criminals, and rapists. Covering them up makes you complicit."
Before those comments, the Ukrainian foreign ministry had already said on X on Wednesday that it was "outraged" by the ZFF decision.
According to Trofimova's website, she has previously made documentaries in Syria, Iraq and the Democratic Republic of Congo that have been broadcast on Russia's state-run RT television, which has been hit by sanctions from the European Union and the United States.
Jungen acknowledged that the director was "not unproblematic", stressing that the "Russians at War" documentary would be discussed at a roundtable event during the festival.
A number of stars are set to attend the ZFF, which this year is celebrating its 20th anniversary during a 10-day film bonanza from October 3 to 13, including Kate Winslet, Richard Gere and Jude Law.
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