Nick Cave responds to fan who accuses him of ‘double standard’ over ‘solidarity with Ukraine’ post

Nick Cave has defended himself from an accusation of “double standards” after expressing “undivided solidarity” with Ukraine.

The musician replied to a message sent to him via Red Hand Files, a portal that allows Cave’s fans to ask him questions.

One fan named Ahmet addressed Cave’s previous post about the Russia-Ukraine war, stating: “What bugs me about the Ukraine message, though, is that you haven’t expressed such a support for the Palestinian people.”

Ahmet continued by saying that Cave hasn’t “expressed clear and undivided solidarity with the Palestinian people who are also subjected to such a brutal treatment”.

The message added that Cave had “described Israel as a functioning democracy and mapped out the solution as a political will shared by both sides”. However, Ahmet said that Cave posting his support of Ukraine but not Palestine “puts [him] on a position of a double standard”.

In his response, Cave said: “There is little that I can disagree with in your letter, other than to say that the invasion of Ukraine by Russia is simply not the same thing as the ongoing conflict between Israel and Palestine; one is a brutal unprovoked attack on one state by another, in the hope of revising the entire security structure of Europe, and the other is a deeply complex clash of two nations that is far from straightforward.”

He continued by saying: “What the two conflicts do share is the tragic fate of all innocents who must cower in bomb shelters in fear of their lives, and I sympathise deeply with all such communities wherever – and whoever – they are.”

Cave said that, while he does not “wish to repeat” his views on Israel-Palestine, he has “taken part in several events to raise money for schools within their communities” over the last two decades.

He added: “But this is not the time for these debates. This is the time to unite in unequivocal support and love for the people of Ukraine.

“Right now, a catastrophe is unfolding and I stand with all Ukrainians at this horrific moment in history. I would like nothing more than to play in Kyiv and I was very much looking forward to our show there. I also have some wonderful fans in Russia and I know, through these very Files, that many people there vehemently oppose the actions of Putin’s regime. If I could play for those people too, I would.”

Find Cave’s full response below:

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