Queen Margrethe II of Denmark will not take care of the children's book award named after Hans Andersen after the controversy over the appointment of the Russian Academy of Arts academician, Anastasia Arkhipova, to the position of the head of the jury of the award.
Arkhipova was elected as the head of the jury in September 2022 at the World Congress of the International Children's Book Council. Several countries, in particular Sweden and the Baltic states, were against such a decision because of Russian aggression against Ukraine. They called on the international board of the congress to ask the Russian chairman to leave his post, Radio Denmark reports.
The Danish Royal House noted that the monarch could not be part of the conflict. The award was also removed from the list of Queen's foreign patronages on the Royal Palace website.
The Andersen Prize is awarded to the best children's writers and illustrators. It is awarded once every two years.
The winners were last chosen in 2022. French writer Marie-Aude Murail and Korean illustrator Susie Lee became laureates.
