Russia will not be submitting a film for Oscars 2023 under the international feature film category, thus increasing the gap between the country and the West.

The refusal to send a film comes at the time when Washington and Moscow's relationship is being strained in view of Russia's invasion of Ukraine and its subsequent aftermath. The presidium of the Film Academy of Russia has decided not to nominate a national film for the Oscars award of the American Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences in 2022,” the Russian academy said in a statement accessed by The Guardian. 

According to reports, US was accused by Russia of intervening in the ongoing war. However, Pavel Tchoukhrai, the head of the local Oscar committee has resigned after he was taken aback by Russia's Oscar boycott. He told the AFP that the decision was taken "behind his back".

The last two Russian films that got selected for the Oscars under the best international feature film were Leviathan (2014) and Loveless (2017).