The position of Danish PEN on Russian literature
No War Against Russian Art and Literature PEN was founded in 1921, after the experience from the World War One propaganda, with the purpose of creating a forum for dialogue between literature in different languages and from different countries. Therefore, PEN must in every situation, including now during the Russian attack on Ukraine, strive to establish, maintain and expand the contacts that exist between writers in both countries directly involved, as well as in the world at large. International PEN must therefore distance itself from the partial or total boycott of Russian culture and arts, including Russian literature and Russian writers, a boycott which many countries are practicing now. Although we understand and share the anger and frustration Russia’s attack on Ukraine has aroused, International PEN must distance itself from such collective punishments and call for a thorough stance in each case. We do not rule out the possibility that there may be cases where interacti