Dancing in the dark: Eurovision’s blind eye to Russian sanctions evasion in Dubai

A spectacular 3,000-drone light show over Vienna’s Schönbrunn Palace was meant to be the crowning glory of the 70th Eurovision song contest. Instead, it has illuminated a catastrophic failure of due diligence. An investigation into the event's technical partner, Cyberdrone, reveals a deeply troubling nexus of Russian tech origins, Dubai-based shell companies, and dual-use swarming technology. In a year when the European Broadcasting Union is already facing unprecedented geopolitical boycotts, the decision to hire a company so closely linked to the Russian engineering sector exposes a staggering hypocrisy, making a mockery of the competition's ban on Russia following the invasion of Ukraine.