The All-Russia State Television and Radio Broadcasting Company (RTR) and Channel One Russia (C1R) in the Eurovision Song Contest from to , while the Public Broadcasting Company of Ukraine (UA:PBC/Suspilne) and its predecessor National Television Company of Ukraine (NTU) have since . Until , the two countries had positive relations, and exchanged top-3 points with each other several times. Barring a minor dispute over Ukraine's entry "Dancing Lasha Tumbai" (whose title was alleged to be a mondegreen of "Russia goodbye", but was defended by its performer as being meaningless), notable conflicts began to emerge between the two countries at the contest in the wake of the Russian annexation of Crimea in 2014.
In , Ukraine's entry was "1944", a song by Jamala that was inspired by her great-grandmother's experiences during the deportation of the Crimean Tatars by the Soviet Union. The song was criticised by Russian officials, who argued that it violated Eurovision rules against political content due to its allusions to the Russian annexation of Crimea. "1944" would ultimately win the contest. While there were calls for Russia to boycott the in Kyiv over the war in Donbas, Russia did unveil an entrant—Julia Samoylova. However, after she was unveiled, it was reported that Samoylova had been banned from entering Ukraine for three years for violating a Ukrainian ban on direct travel to Crimea from Russia. The European Broadcasting Union (EBU) attempted to reconcile the issues so that Samoylova could perform, calling upon the Ukrainian government to remove or defer her travel ban for the contest, and offering Russia the opportunity to perform their song from a remote venue. However, C1R passed on the offer, wanting to have Samoylova perform in Kyiv as with all other entrants. On 13 April 2017, Channel One announced that it would not broadcast the contest, effectively withdrawing.
Ukraine withdrew from the contest, after the winner of Maruv as well as the runners-up all refused to sign the participation contract, which required them to refrain from touring in Russia for a period of time. It was the first time since that Ukraine was absent from the contest.
Prior to the contest, controversy again emerged in the , resulting in its winner Alina Pash, who was alleged to have travelled to Crimea in violation of Ukrainian laws, replaced by runner-up Kalush Orchestra as the Ukrainian entrant. Following the Russian invasion of Ukraine and subsequent protests from other participating countries, Russia was excluded from participating in the contest, where Ukraine went on to win. As a result, Ukraine was initially given the opportunity to host the contest. However, the EBU later decided that the country would not be able to host due to security concerns caused by the Russian invasion, with the United Kingdom, which had finished in second place in 2022, being chosen to host on Ukraine's behalf.
2007 contest
Verka Serduchka was chosen to represent Ukraine at the with the song "Dancing Lasha Tumbai". However, it was alleged that the song had contained political subtext, including a reference in its lyrics to Maidan (the site of the Orange Revolution demonstrations), and that the phrase "Lasha Tumbai" was a mondegreen of "Russia goodbye". Serduchka denied these allegations, claiming that the phrase "lasha tumbai" was Mongolian for "churned butter". On the Russian talk show Let Them Talk, which aired on Channel One Russia just after the final of the contest, a native Mongolian speaker explained that the phrase "Lasha Tumbai" does not exist in the Mongolian language. Serduchka later stated that "Lasha Tumbai" was a meaningless phrase meant to rhyme with other lyrics.
2009 contest
In the , held in Moscow after Russia's win the previous year, Russia was represented by Ukrainian singer Anastasia Prikhodko, who had entered and won the Russian national selection after being disqualified from the Ukrainian one. She performed her song "Mamo", singing in both Ukrainian and Russian languages. Following the Russian annexation of Crimea in 2014, Prikhodko denounced Russia's actions and ceased performing there.
2014 and 2015 contests
In the wake of the Russian military intervention in Ukraine and subsequent annexation of Crimea from Ukraine in 2014, as well as the introduction of a "gay propaganda" law in Russia in 2013, public opposition to Russia became visible on multiple fronts, including the Eurovision Song Contest. The Russian entrants at the and contests, the Tolmachevy Sisters and Polina Gagarina respectively, were the subject of booing from the audience, in particular at any time they were mentioned or awarded points. Commenting on the booing at the Tolmachevy Sisters, Fraser Nelson, editor of The Spectator magazine, wrote: "I can't remember the last time I heard a Eurovision audience boo anyone; during the Iraq war in 2003, no one booed Britain. [...] There's a difference between the Russian government and the Russian people, and the girls were there to represent the latter. They didn't deserve the obloquy. And the Danes were wrong to have made the booing so audible." The booing in 2014 led the organisers of the 2015 contest to install 'anti-booing technology', which was deployed for the first time in the history of the contest. The Tolmachevy Sisters and Gagarina have since expressed their support for the Russian invasion of Ukraine, with the latter notably performing at the 2022 Moscow rally.
2016 contest
Jamala, who represented Ukraine at the , won with the song "1944". The lyrics for her song concern the deportation of the Crimean Tatars, in the 1940s, by the Soviet Union at the hands of Joseph Stalin because of their alleged collaboration with the Nazis. Jamala explained that the lyrics were inspired by the story of her great-grandmother Nazylkhan, who was in her mid-20s when she and her five children were deported to barren Central Asia. One of the daughters did not survive the journey. The contest's rules state that "no lyrics, speeches, gestures of political or similar nature shall be permitted", so Jamala repeatedly stated that her song was not referencing the 2014 annexation of Crimea, but her own personal family history. She stated, "I needed that song to free myself, to release the memory of my great-grandmother, the memory of that girl who has no grave." However, she also referenced the current state of Crimea post-annexation, saying "Of course [the song is] about 2014 as well." "Now the Crimean Tatars are on occupied territory and it is very hard for them. They are under tremendous pressure. Some have disappeared without a trace. And that is terrifying. I would not want to see history repeat itself."
Russian officials, including multiple MPs and the spokesperson of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Maria Zakharova, were dissatisfied with the outcome and alleged that the song was a political statement and an allusion on the 2014 annexation of Crimea, forbidden by the rules of the contest. Zakharova wrote in a Facebook post that the next Eurovision winner "might as well be about the conflict in Syria", proposing the lyrics: "Assad blood, Assad worst. Give me prize, that we can host." Other officials suggested boycotting the Ukraine-hosted , with Frants Klintsevich, deputy chairman of the Federation Council Committee on Defense and Security stating, "It was not the Ukrainian singer Jamala and her song '1944' that won Eurovision 2016, it was politics that beat art. If nothing changes in Ukraine by next year, then I don't think we need to take part."
Despite this, Russia's entrant Sergey Lazarev, who placed third in the competition, congratulated Jamala on her win. Lazarev was later sanctioned by the Ukrainian government in January 2023 for his support of the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
2017 contest
The Russian military intervention in Ukraine, which began in late February 2014, prompted a number of governments to apply sanctions against individuals, businesses and officials from Russia. In 2015, the Ukrainian government began to blacklist people who supported the 2014 annexation of Crimea by Russia from entering the country. Deputy Prime Minister Vyacheslav Kyrylenko stated that the country would not lift this ban for the Eurovision Song Contest 2017. The European Broadcasting Union (EBU) iterated that their goal was for Eurovision to remain inclusive, and that they were "engaging in constructive dialogue with the Public Broadcasting Company of Ukraine (UA:PBC) and the Ukrainian authorities to ensure that all delegates and artists can come and stay in Ukraine". A representative of the host broadcaster told Billboard that the blacklist rules were beyond their control. On 3 March 2017, Russian politician Vitaly Milonov called upon the country to withdraw from the 2017 contest amid fears of the ongoing conflict in eastern Ukraine. He described Russia as being "unwelcome guests in a country seized by fanatics".
Russian selection, travel ban It was reported on 13 March 2017 that Ukrainian officials were investigating Julia Samoylova, Russia's entrant at the 2017 contest, for having violated a ban on direct travel to Crimea from Russia; she had visited Kerch in 2015 to give a performance. Ukrainian officials have speculated that Russia's choice of Samoylova may have been a deliberate political statement, having knowingly picked a singer who had performed in the disputed territory in order to instigate a political controversy; interior minister adviser Anton Herashchenko stated that he could not "exclude that actions could be taken by our side to deny her entry" if Russia was using the entry as a "provocation", while the deputy director of ATR, a Ukrainian television broadcaster that serves the Crimean Tatar population, argued that it was a "cynical and immoral move". Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine Pavlo Klimkin stated that he considers the choice of Samoylova as the Eurovision participant is most likely to be a provocation from Russia. Later the President of Ukraine Petro Poroshenko stated the same. Ben Royston, who had advised past Eurovision delegations in Azerbaijan and Sweden, argued that Russia's choice of a performer with a disability may have also been deliberate, explaining to The Guardian that "[Russia] chose a wheelchair-bound contestant who had made pro-Russian statements about Crimea on social media. She was never going to be allowed in Ukraine, but they chose her anyway. And now Russia are very publicly saying: 'How can Ukraine let this poor sweet girl in a wheelchair be the victim of your laws?' It seems clearly all part of the Russia PR machine." Russia has denied that their choice of performer was meant to be a political statement, and stated that their choice of a performer with a disability was meant to be an expression of diversity.
The Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) confirmed on 22 March 2017 that Samoylova had been banned from entering Ukraine for three years for illegally travelling to Crimea from Russia, thus violating article 204-2 of Code of Ukraine on Administrative Offenses.Response of the Security Service of Ukraine on the request about legal reasons for prohibition to enter the territory of Ukraine for Russian citizen Yulia Samoilova – Security Service of Ukraine, 30 March 2017. The EBU responded by stating that it was continuing to ensure that all entrants would be able to perform in Kyiv, but that "we are deeply disappointed in this decision as we feel it goes against both the spirit of the contest and the notion of inclusiveness that lies at the heart of its values", and also stated that EBU will respect the laws of hosting country. Frants Klintsevich, First Deputy Chairman of the Federation Council Committee on Defence and Security, threatened that Russia would boycott Eurovision unless its organisers declared the government decision to be "unacceptable". He also accused them of being "completely politicised and biased".