Home News Classic Rock News Elton John’s Pow Wow with Putin Won’t Take Place This Month

Elton John’s Pow Wow with Putin Won’t Take Place This Month

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ABC/Randy HolmesElton John is heading to Russia this month to perform two concerts, but his schedule won’t include a long-awaited meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Last November, Elton said he and Putin had shared a phone call and were working toward a time to meet so they could discuss Elton’s concerns about Russia’s persecution of gays.  But the BBC reports that, according to a Kremlin spokesperson, there is “no appropriate time in the two men’s schedules” for the meeting to take place.

According to the BBC, the spokesperson, Dmitry Peskov, told reporters, “We were in correspondence with [Elton] a couple of weeks ago, because there had been an agreement that, if their schedules allow, this meeting would take place. President Putin expressed readiness for this meeting. But this time, the meeting won’t take place, unfortunately.”

Elton’s performing in St. Petersburg on May 28, and in Moscow May 30.

You may recall that last year, Elton was punk’d by two Russian pranksters who called him and pretended to be Putin.  Not long afterward, the real Putin called Elton and had what the singer described as an “affable, apologetic and sincere” conversation.

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