American alternative rock band The Killers were booed for inviting a fan, a Russian drummer, to the stage. during one of the concerts of his European tour, in a resort in the tourist and port city of Batumi, on the Black Sea, Republic of Georgia.

The Georgians, who have a long history of tensions with Russia and were once part of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, responded with boos and dismissive gestures to the group’s singer’s words: Brandon Flowers.

“Go Go. Can’t recognize someone as your brother?he asked the audience. “Are they all separated by national borders? So I’m not your brother because I’m from America?”. The screaming didn’t stop and Flowers walked off to one side of the stage.

The history of Georgia dates back to ancient times, an area dominated at times by the Roman Empire and at times by Constantinople, as well as by the Russian Empire. between 1918 and 1921 it was the Democratic Republic of Georgia, until it was invaded by the Red Army, and it became the USSR.

It declared its independence in 1991, but a coup d’état plunged the fledgling new state into civil war until 1995. It was at war with Russia in 2008. Today, hostility has worsened since the Russian invasion of Ukraine, which began in February 2022. Since then many Russian citizens have emigrated to Georgia, where they are treated with suspicion, and public opinion is strongly pro-Ukrainian.

The Killers, at last Tuesday’s show in Batumi, saw their show go out of business; many people left the arena after hearing Flowers talk about brotherhood between Russians and Georgians. The band’s social networks published an apology on Wednesday, assuring that it was not their intention to offend anyone, and that they have a habit of inviting people from the audience to play the drums.

“We recognize that any comment aimed at implying that the entire audience and fans of The Killers are siblings may be misinterpreted,” the statement said.