Opinions & Interviews

Call on Belarusians to preserve memory, truth about Great Patriotic War

An archive photo

MINSK, 6 May (BelTA) – We should not let the Great Victory be forgotten and the truth about this horrible war be distorted, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Belarus to Latvia Vasily Markovich told BelTA.

The ambassador noted that for Belarus Victory Day is filled with sadness and joy at the same time, as this war affected every Belarusian family: some fought on the frontline of the war, others worked in the rear or took up arms as partisans or members of the underground movement. “The war was raging in the territory of Belarus for three years, one month, and six days. It resulted in hundreds of destroyed cities, thousands of burnt down villages, 140 punitive operations, 260 concentrations camps and mass graves. The number of victims of the war is hard to imagine: 1.5 million civilians died in concentration camps alone. We should not let others forget our Great Victory and distort the truth about that horrible war. To forget means to betray those who sacrificed their lives for the Victory,” Ambassador Vasily Markovich stressed.

Due to the current situation, representatives of the embassy will be unable to uphold the tradition and lay wreaths at the Monument to the Liberators of Riga together with war veterans, bring flowers to soldiers’ graves and honor them with a minute of silence. “I am sure, however, that next year we will do this together with veterans. I wish health and high spirits to our dear veterans,” the ambassador noted.

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