I don´t think that my statement is "contradicting itself" - What I was trying to say:
The executive producers should have taken into account that this year´s participation of Ukraine in the contest is very special due to the invasion. In theory, it´s "alright to treat Ukraine as every other country" regarding the running order but personally, I think that giving them "the advantage" of either opening the semi or performing just before the break would be more "professional" because Eurovision viewers will clearly have their eyes on Ukraine this year. Letting them performing first would enable the presenters to address the on-going war in a few words/phrases (as
@A-lister also wished for) - of course, letting Ukraine perform first would set the tone for the next participants but it can also lead to a cognitive and emotional "relief" for the viewers because from that moment on, they can "focus" on the other participants without having to think "I´m so keen on Ukraine this evening. Will they perform? How will they perform? The performers must be struggling etc" (which is something some viewers might think throughout the performers before Ukraine actually hits the stage).
Letting them perform before the break, gives the casual viewers the chance to elaborate/comment/process the performance. I do think that people will talk about Ukraine in Eurovision more after their performance than other countries or at least, they may implicitly think about it and thus, giving the viewers a break for like 3 minutes before we continue with the other performers is more "professional" in my opinion because viewers will have a short moment to emotionally react to Ukraine´s participation and they will be given more time "to get a clear mind" for other performances.
Seeing Ukraine being sandwhiched in the first half - feels wrong to me - because - and that´s my theory - people will be looking for Ukraine´s participation/performance the most (not really for the song or performance itself but for the sake of "participation" under these circumstances).
Also, I didn´t demand "a speech" - just a few words from the hosts like "it´s so great to be here united/together despite what´s been going on and now it´s time for the first participant... and we are so glad that they are here with us tonight.."
Maybe I´m wrong and I overestimate how viewers will anticipate/reflect/elaborate on Ukraine´s participation that evening but I really think it would be "more of an advantage" for other participants if Ukraine performed before the break.
I just imagined how I would be stitting in the living room with my family, some friends (who don´t follow the contest as we do and hear the songs for the first time during the live shows) and I´m 100% sure that they will comment on Ukraine even throughout the start of the next performance and I will be questioned IF/when they will perform.