Russian ambassador to the Lao PDR Vladimir Kalinin 

(KPL) In an interview to media on Monday, Russian ambassador to the Lao PDR Vladimir Kalinin highlighted the 79th anniversary of the victory in the Great Patriotic War and President Thongloun Sisoulith’s planned visit to Russia to attend the Victory Parade scheduled for May 9.

“The victory over Nazism remains a lesson to the mankind that is relevant today, when there are still those who are trying to revive this abhorring ideology and rewrite history. Manifestations of racism, violent extremism, aggressive nationalism and neo-Nazism are on the rise in the world. We see how in certain countries extremists demolish memorials to Soviet soldiers who fought in World War II, erase and demonize the memory of true heroes, create a real cult of the Nazis and their proxies,” said Ambassador Vladimir Kalinin.

President Thongloun Sisoulith’s visit to Moscow will be a great success and a significant milestone for bilateral relations between Laos and Russia, according to the Russian ambassador.

He said that Russia highly appreciates the truly brotherly attitude of the Lao Government and people to the shared history of the two countries.

“Significant milestones in this sphere are that last year monuments to Soviet pilots who sacrificed their lives during the "undeclared war" against Indochina were unveiled in Laos. We view it as an important contribution of Laos to the preservation of the historical truth and rejection of any attempts to falsify history,” said Ambassador Vladimir Kalinin.

The Russian diplomat affirmed that Russia will always stand ready to work together with Laos – Russia’s true friend and traditional strategic partner in the region –, in mutually respectful cooperation, to unite efforts and jointly search for solutions to all existing problems in the interest of promoting peace, stability and security.

Speaking about the Victory Parade on May 9, it gives me a special pleasure to remind that in 2019, 30 legendary soviet tanks “T-34” were transferred to Russia from Laos. Russian people will always remember this invaluable gift from the Lao people.

I would like to use this opportunity to invite dear Lao friends to watch the live broadcast of the Parade on the Red Square, commemorating the 79th anniversary of the victory in the Great Patriotic War on May 9. Here in Laos in our Embassy compound we will also celebrate and hold traditional activities – “Immortal Regiment”, “Garden of Memory”, “Candle of Memory” and “Ribbon of Saint George”. We will lay wreaths to the monuments to the Soviet pilots in Vientiane and Xiang Khuang.

KPL