Brandon Flowers said he was faced with “an impossible situation” after he inadvertently invite a Russian fan on stage during The killers‘ watch Georgia.

The frontman of the Las Vegas-formed rock band sparked controversy with remarks he made at the Black Sea Arena in Batumi, where the band was performing as part of their Imploding the Mirage tour.

As is tradition, the band invited a fan on stage to play drums to their 2006 song, “For Reasons Unknown,” when Flowers, 42, addressed the crowd.

“We don’t know the etiquette of this country, but this guy is Russian. Is it okay for a Russian to come here? He asked.

While there were some cheers in the crowd, many booed and shouted, “No.”

Russian-Georgian relations have been particularly tense since RussiaUkraine’s invasion of Ukraine last year led to an emigration of Russian citizens to Georgia. The Killers also occurred shortly after the 25th anniversary of Russian President Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Georgia in 2008.

“I had to calm down an impossible situation,” Flowers said. Sunday weather in a new interview.

“We want our concerts to be communal and I had no idea that the words I have been taught all my life to represent the unity of the human family could be considered a pro-Russian occupation. We are sad about how it turned out.

After the band’s performance “For Reasons Unknown”, Flowers spoke to the crowd, saying to them, “You can’t recognize if someone is your brother? He’s not your brother? We all separate at the borders of our countries? I’m not your brother? Am I not your brother, coming from America?

Repeating that, Flowers said the group had the ability to “bring people together”, adding, “Tonight I want us to celebrate the fact that we’re here together, and I don’t want it to go wrong.

“I see you as my brothers and sisters,” he continued before introducing the next song.

Flowers’ comments, as well as an apology shared by The Killers after their concert, caused an uproar among Georgian fans on social media.

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“Good people of Georgia, we never meant to offend anyone! ” the band wrote in a statement.

“We have a long tradition of inviting people to play drums and it seemed from the stage that the crowd’s initial response was that they were ok with tonight’s audience member coming on scene with us.”

The band continued, “We recognize that a comment purporting to suggest that the entire Killers audience and fans are ‘brothers and sisters’ could be misinterpreted.

“We didn’t want to upset anyone and apologize. We are at your side and hope to come back soon.

The Killers headlined the Reading Festival in the UK on Saturday, where they continued their tradition of inviting a fan on stage to play drums on ‘For Reasons Unknown’.

You can read critic Mark Beaumont’s review here.