Belgians value the memory of Soviet soldiers who participated in the liberation of the country from Nazism during World War II and take care of their graves, Russian Ambassador in Brussels Alexander Tokovinin said on Thursday
MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 11th June, 2020) Belgians value the memory of Soviet soldiers who participated in the liberation of the country from Nazism during World War II and take care of their graves, Russian Ambassador in Brussels Alexander Tokovinin said on Thursday.
"We are pleased with the fact that the memory of our compatriots who participated in the liberation of Belgium is cherished there today, that their graves are looked after, that people gather new information about them. Representatives of the Belgian authorities take part in the ceremonies dedicated to their memory," the ambassador said during an online conference organized by the Russian Historical Society.
Tokovinin noted that Belgium had also shown interest in developing cooperation with Russia in relation to military history.
"Agreements were reached on working contacts with representatives of the Russian Historical Society, which, unfortunately, had to be postponed due to the coronavirus-related restrictions, but we hope that this dialogue will continue," the diplomat said.
In general, according to Tokovinin, Belgium has a balanced attitude to WWII history.
"In September last year, when the 75th anniversary of the country's liberation from Nazism was celebrated here [in Belgium], much was said about the decisive role of the Soviet Union in achieving victory, that without battles on the eastern front there would be no liberation of the Belgian cities. They remembered the role of the Resistance movement, which is a very interesting page in the history of the war. There were about 15 resistance movements in organizations in which the Communist Party of Belgium and the independence front formed by it played the most prominent role," the ambassador added.
In 1942, the Nazis forced approximately 20,000 captive Soviet soldiers in Belgium into labor at coal mines. Several hundreds of them fled and joined the Belgian guerrillas in their fight against Nazi Germany. While there are presently more than 300 known burial sites of Soviet WWII partisans in Belgium, a bigger number of them remain unidentified, with a search and archival works underway. Memorials to Soviet soldiers are installed in Brussels, Liege, Namur, Leuven, Genk, Nidrum, Montignies-sur-Sambre and Cointe.
