PreferredRussia has sent a note of protest to Armenia over the desecration of a Soviet memorial complex in Gyumri, Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) spokesperson Maria Zakharova announced at a press briefing Thursday.
“This blasphemous act is not just hooliganism, but a targeted attack on the shared historical memory of our countries, and an attempt at vandalism of the Great Victory. Naturally, we [i.e. Russia] have sent a note of protest to the Armenian side,” the Russian MFA spokesperson said.
She added that “servicemen of the Russian 102nd Military Base stationed in that city immediately joined the restoration work on the memorial complex.”
Zakharova noted that information resources affiliated with the Armenian authorities are trying to accuse Russia of desecrating the monument.
“The fact that the official authorities of Armenia, instead of resolutely condemning the desecration of the monument or at least expressing a clear position, have decided to remain silent is puzzling; this is already becoming a custom,” the Russian MFA spokesperson said.
As an example, she pointed to the recent statements made by Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelenskyy in Yerevan, after which there was no response from the Armenian authorities.
Zakharova noted that such permissiveness and the rampant anti-Russian campaign accompanying the parliamentary elections in Armenia on June 7 have created fertile ground for such barbaric acts. Moreover, attempts were observed by some information resources to present this incident as a provocation by the Russian side.
The Russian MFA spokesperson noted that experience shows that the desecration of the memory of ancestors and the fight against monuments are an integral part of rapprochement with the EU, and sometimes simply a mandatory condition.
