Russia on Saturday hosted its own version of Eurovision, three years after being banned from the song contest over its invasion of Ukraine.
Founded by the Soviet leader Leonid Brezhnev, Intervision was a kitschy crooning contest that was broadcast mainly across the eastern bloc from the 1960s until the 1980s.
Vladimir Putin, the Russian president, said on Saturday night that he revived the competition this year in celebration of "trust between cultures" and of each nation's "free development and preservation of their identity".
Performers from 23 countries - most of them allies of Russia, including China, Belarus and India - sung and danced on stage at Live Arena in Moscow to compete for a prize fund of 30 million roubles (£260,000).
Putin appeared in a video broadcast on a big screen in the stadium, wishing the participants luck before launching into a speech underlining that Russia supported "constructive cooperation" and spiritual enrichment "through dialogue and mutual respect".
His calls for cultural unity clashed with the reality of Russia's deadly war on Ukraine, which grinds on at staggering human cost as Moscow continues to funnel young men - disproportionately from minority populations - into the front lines as cannon fodder.
Seven hundred miles away from the spectacle, leaders in Warsaw remained on alert for more Russian missiles and drones after a barrage of deadly attacks on western Ukraine triggered Nato jets to be scrambled in order to protect Polish airspace.
Nato also sent Italian F-35 jets to intercept Russian aircraft after Estonia said three of Moscow's MiG-31 jets, which can carry hypersonic missiles, entered its airspace in an "unprecedentedly brazen" escalation.
It was the latest reminder that, despite peace talks, Putin has no intention of laying down arms.
None of that warmongering made the cut in Putin's propaganda video at Intervision. Instead, the president insisted that his focus was on the "uniting power of art".
The song contest was part of the Kremlin's effort to court the Brics countries and global south, and echoes the vision recently laid out by Putin and Xi Jinping, the Chinese president, for a "multipolar world order" challenging the US and Europe.
It was also a way for Putin to dismiss concerns among his allies that Moscow has become isolated on the global stage.
In a sign of Moscow's increasingly close relationship with Beijing and New Delhi, Intervision was presented by Meng Lei, a Chinese showman, and Stefy Patel, an Indian actor.
"The quality is high. The main thing for us is that they bring with them their culture, a sense of life and spiritual traditions. This has succeeded," said Sergei Lavrov, the Russian foreign minister, who was in the audience on Saturday and called the show "a beautiful idea".
Lavrov said it was "obvious" for him that the contest would be "in demand". But Intervision appeared to be a rip-off of Eurovision, featuring video postcards, a green room, and classic Steadicam shots.
The foreign minister had previously assured audiences that the contest would be free of "perversions or affronts to human nature" with Kremlin-aligned officials insisting the acts promoted "traditional family values".
Russia was represented by Shaman, a bleach-blond rock singer who performed his song "Straight To The Heart" in Russian.
The singer was an obvious choice to represent the host country due to his outspoken support for the invasion of Ukraine. He has been hit by EU sanctions for taking part in Kremlin-organised concerts in Russian-occupied regions of Ukraine and recently performed in North Korea to the delight of Kim Jong un, the country's president.
After his performance Shaman addressed the audience and asked the jury not to evaluate his performance.
"Hospitality is an integral part of the Russian soul, and I know that according to the laws of hospitality, I have no right to contend for victory," he said. "I represent Russia, and Russia has already won."
Brandon Howard, a US singer, had been due to take part in the competition in what was described as a sign of thawing relations between Washington and Moscow.
Howard, however, pulled out earlier this week and was replaced by Australian-born singer Vassy, who lives in Los Angeles.
"Unfortunately, I had some... family issues that happened here domestically, that I wasn't [going] to be able to go abroad and do that," the singer told the BBC after announcing his withdrawal. "However, I really believe that it's such a wonderful event."
But then, at the last minute, the host of the show stated that the singer Vassy was unable to participate due to the "unprecedented political pressure" exerted by the Australian government.
"It is sad when politics attempts to get involved in the world that belongs to the art of music and human feelings," Alexei Vorobyov said announcing the withdrawal.
The contest, held for the first time in 35 years, was broadcast on four continents, with the Kremlin earlier claiming that around four billion people would watch the three-and-a-half hour show. Konstantin Ernst, head of Channel One Russia, stated that the ceremony was filmed using 36 cameras, with 100 people involved in the production.
Vietnam won the contest with 422 points, followed by Kyrgyzstan with 333 points, and Qatar in third place with 312 points.
Almost 8,000 people watched the international live broadcast on YouTube.
Dima Bilan and Polina Gagarina opened the show, singing "At Dawn", a synthpop Russian song. Both singers have represented the country at Eurovision.
Bilan won Eurovision in 2008. Gagarina sang at at the song contest in 2015, a year after Russia annexed Crimea.
Intervision 2026 will be held in Saudi Arabia, organisers said.
The contest is not the first time that Russia has sought to promote alternatives to Western culture. When McDonalds ended its Russian operations in 2022, following the invasion of Ukraine, its restaurants were sold and rebranded under the trade brand "Tasty and that's it."