The Royal Palace of Caserta has called off the symphony concert, which was scheduled to be conducted by Valery Gergiev. The event had been scheduled as part of the “A Summer for Kings” festival on July 27 in the courtyard of the Vanvitellian complex. The cancellation came after controversy erupted over the Russian conductor's attendance, which was attacked for viewpoints thought to be close to Putin, raising concerns about potential protests organized by Ukrainian associations. "We explained, fought, believed, and we won! Thanks to your efforts, Campania will not host a Putin ambassador. For those who desire, we will convene on Sunday evening in front of the Royal Palace to commemorate the majesty and strength of democracy, accompanied by the European flags". This was the social media post of European Commission Vice President Pina Picierno, who had opposed Gergiev's presence in Italy from the beginning. The Russian embassy in Italy responded with a strong reaction, describing the concert cancellation as "shocking" and a "specially engineered" controversy that was intended to create tensions between Italy and Russia.