20.10.2017.
Ministers Vulin and Shoigu lay wreaths at Belgrade Liberators Thomb
On the occasion of marking the 73rd anniversary of the liberation of the Serbian capital, the defence ministers of Serbia and the Russian Federation, Aleksandar Vulin and Sergei Shoigu have laid wreaths at the Belgrade Liberators Thomb and the Monument to the Soviet soldier, today, with state and military honors.
Minister Vulin wrote in the memorial book:"Peace and freedom were the goods and the greatest dignity of the modest, well-known and unknown fighters, both Serbian and Russian soldiers for the liberation of Belgrade in the Second World War. Together they achieved great goals Thanks to them, traditional friendship between our two peoples was preserved. Their shares were their lives. Through history, we were so many times linked with a common and survived disaster - the Second World War.
The culture of memory obliges us to eternally bow to the saints' fighters for the liberation of Belgrade, and our paths lead us to prosperity and the future without wars in the whole world.
Russian Minister of Defence Sergei Shoigu wrote:
"To Soviet and Yugoslav soldiers who gave their lives in the fight against fascism. We are deeply grateful to the brotherly Serbian people for the careful protection of our common history. We will always remember the lessons from history and together we will fight the attempts of Fascism restoration in Europe.
Some time ago, representative of the President of the Republic, representatives of the Ministry of Defence, the City of Belgrade, the embassies of Russia, Ukraine, Belarus and Azerbaijan, as well as representatives of SUBNOR and other organizations dedicated to cultivating tradition, laid wreaths at the Belgrade Liberators Thomb.The delegation of the Russian veterans of the war, led by generals Mikhail Alekseevich Moysheev and Viktor Fedorovich Ermakov, laid wreaths at the Monument to Soviet veterans at Avala.
After several days of heavy fighting, members of the Yugoslav People's Liberation Army, assisted by the Red Army forces, liberated the capital of Yugoslavia on 20th October 1944, thus ending a four-year period of occupation during which a large number of Belgrade citizens were killed, while the city suffered major devastation.
