UK bars bagpipers from Moscow
2008-09-05 19:05
Edinburgh - The sound of bagpipes has fallen victim to frosty relations between the West and Russia. British officials have banned three military bands from attending a tattoo in Moscow.
More than 40 musicians have been told they won't be taking part in the Kremlin Zoria in Red Square because of Russia's invasion of Georgia.
The Foreign Office said on Friday that it's a demonstration that it's not "business as usual" between Britain and Russia.
The ban affects army pipe bands from the 2 Scots Regiment, the Irish Guards and 1 Royal Gurkha Rifles.
Brigadier Mel Jameson, former head of the Edinburgh Military Tattoo, helped found the Kremlin Zoria. He said the action "just shows that music apparently does not cross all boundaries".
- AP