80 years ago, Soviet forces broke the blockade of Leningrad. Russia emphasizes the wartime history of present-day St. Petersburg, calling the devastating siege a genocide.
from the president of Russia From Vladimir Putin the anticipated declaration of a new motion was not heard in St. Petersburg.
When meeting the veterans of the Second World War, Putin contented himself with finding out why the blockade of Leningrad was not originally called genocide in the Soviet Union.
According to Putin, it was not possible to take into account all the evidence at the Nuremberg trials, where the Nazis were on trial.
He said that the subject has been kept quiet “due to tolerance” and also because there was no desire to spoil relations with “many countries”.
The siege of Leningrad was defined as genocide
The siege of Leningrad was defined as genocide by the St. Petersburg court in the fall.
Now Putin repeated this view, saying that representatives of many European countries participated in the blockade and committed crimes.
The Russian leader did not specifically list who he meant.
The main role in the siege of Leningrad, which lasted almost 900 days, was played by the armed forces of Nazi Germany.
The blockade meant enormous suffering for the city’s civilian population and the death of over 600,000 people.
Finland, which was fighting a continuation war, also secured a front on the Isthmus to the northeast of the city.
Putin declared Russia’s victory certain
The Russian president also visited a factory working for the Russian armed forces in St. Petersburg. He answered the employees’ questions at the event, which, based on the television images broadcast afterwards, appeared to be carefully organized.
In it, Putin assured that employees of the arms industry have been exempted from conscription. With an all-terrain vehicle emblazoned with the letter Z used in Russia’s war in the background, Putin declared that victory was certain.
Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu announced on Tuesday about the reforms of the armed forces. They include increasing permanent personnel from 1.35 million to 1.5 million and establishing new forces in Karelia, Russia.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov held a press conference in Moscow. There, too, he continued to take a hard line against the West.
Lavrov: Russia responds to Finland and Sweden’s NATO membership
Lavrov accused that the European Union is completely under the control of the “dictatorship of the United States”.
He compared the US tactics to Napoleon and To Hitler. He said that the United States is waging a proxy war in Ukraine, the goal of which is “the final solution of the Russian question.”
Lavrov also mentioned Finland’s and Sweden’s NATO projects.
He described Finland as a model country for friendly relations for a long time, which has now changed its rhetoric towards Moscow.
Therefore, according to Lavrov, Russia must take the necessary measures if Finland becomes a member of NATO.