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Belgium's public broadcaster VRT has postponed its decision on whether to compete in next year's Eurovision Song Contest, citing ongoing talks with the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) about the competition's participation rules and Israel's involvement.
VRT had been expected to confirm its participation by Tuesday in line with Eurovision's standard regulations for entrant broadcasters.
The broadcaster instead asked the EBU for more time and was granted an extension, according to the Belgian newspaper De Morgen.
"We are in dialogue with the EBU regarding the concerns we previously expressed. Those discussions are still ongoing," VRT told the newspaper.
The EBU is an alliance of public broadcasters that organizes Eurovision each year and holds final authority over which countries and broadcasters may take part. Israel has competed in the contest since 1973 under EBU membership rules that extend beyond continental Europe.
The contest typically draws entries from more than 35 countries and reaches a television audience estimated at over 160 million viewers worldwide, making it one of the continent's most-watched cultural events.
VRT has previously questioned whether a country involved in a large-scale armed conflict should be allowed to take part in the contest.
The broadcaster has called on the EBU to provide greater clarity and transparency on its participation rules, particularly given Eurovision's stated politically neutral and non-political character.
The EBU excluded Russian broadcasters from the contest in 2022 following the invasion of Ukraine, and barred Belarus's broadcaster from the 2021 edition over concerns about state media practices.
Both cases are regularly cited as precedents for how the organization weighs conflict and state conduct against its neutrality standard.
Israel's participation has sparked renewed debate ahead of the next Eurovision edition, with scrutiny on how the EBU applies its rules across participating broadcasters and countries.
Eurovision organizers have long maintained that the contest should remain free of political statements from broadcasters and performers, a principle that has come under repeated strain in recent years as geopolitical tensions have spilled into public discussion of the event.
National broadcasters typically confirm participation months ahead of the contest to allow time for song selection, staging and broadcast scheduling, which puts pressure on VRT to decide.
Reports have circulated that Belgium's French-speaking public broadcaster RTBF could take over the country's Eurovision participation if VRT withdraws.
RTBF denied the reports, and a spokeswoman told De Morgen they were "false rumors."
VRT's decision remains pending as its dialogue with the EBU continues, with no confirmed timeline for a resolution.
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