MOSCOW (Reuters) -Vietnam was crowned the winner of the Russian-hosted Intervision song contest in the early hours of Sunday morning after the Australian-born U.S. participant dropped out at the last minute after what the Russian organisers said was political pressure.

Banished from Eurovision because of the war in Ukraine, Russia revived the Soviet-era song contest featuring acts meant to promote “traditional family values” which saw singers hailing from 23 countries accounting for more than half the world’s population, including China, India and Brazil, compete for a cash prize of 30 million roubles ($360,000).

A professional jury made up of representatives from each participating country decided that Vietnam was the strongest act. Kyrgyzstan was awarded second place and Qatar third pl

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