Comment by the Permanent Mission of Russia to the EU

Submitted on Fri, 08/23/2019 - 15:14

European Union and historical responsibility

23 August is a day best suitable to illustrate the process of falsification and revision of history, under way in the European Union for many years, inspired by a range of its “young” members. Throughout decades we have been painfully observing blunt distortion of facts from history of the Second World War, surreal wars with monuments to Soviet warriors-liberators situated in various EU Member-States. Attempts by successive governments of these countries to make its people forget their own history for the sake of rejecting common past with the Soviet Union look disgusting. But, unfortunately, such is the reality. A reality that at the end of the World War II could not be imagined by European leaders, including the founding fathers of the European Union even in their worst nightmares.

Nevertheless, European bodies declared 23 August the European Day of Remembrance for the victims of all totalitarian and authoritarian regimes to satisfy the whims of Russophobic forces in Europe. It is utterly cynical in this context to attempt to roughly equate antipode ideologies (Nazism and Communism), erase the memory of the heroic deed accomplished by the Soviet army, which was capable of decisively breaking the Nazi war machine, as well as of 26 million Soviet citizens lost.

Those who initiated these decisions managed to poison not only the climate of bilateral relations but also the whole EU policy on the Russian track. We would remind you that Russia-EU cooperation used to enjoy quite successful development. We urge the EU leaders to recall it and express healthy pragmatism and wisdom, whose presence we do not doubt. Yet.