🇷🇺🇲🇹 Russian Embassy in Malta

🌟 Happy #VictoryDay! #WeRemember#LestWeForget #Victory80

@RusEmbMalta Press release. 🗓 On March 24, 1999, the North Atlantic bloc started bombing Yugoslavia. The "military operation" against a sovereign state became a tragic milestone in the life of the Serbian people and delivered a devastating blow to international law. The US and its cronies bombed the cities, including Belgrade, villages & civilian infrastructure for 78 days, blowing up bridges, passenger trains and buses and killing women, children & elderly people. In doing so, the West destroyed the post-WWII foundations of European security and started replacing the legitimate mechanisms that regulated international relations with a “rules-based order”. ▪️ 3'000 cruise missiles were fired at a sovereign European republic & 80'000 tonnes of aerial bombs rained down on its people. The use of depleted uranium ammunition contaminated vast areas & caused an unprecedented rise in cancer-related diseases that continues to affect people to this day. More than 200.000 non-Albanian residents of Kosovo, forced to flee their homes, have yet to return. Under the cover of NATO's aggression, members of the so-called "Kosovo Liberation Army" committed heinous crimes, including the abduction and murder of Serbs for the illegal trade of human organs. ❗️None of the NATO representatives has been called to account. The victims of the aggression were written off as “collateral damage,” meaning losses that "accompany" the fulfillment of the geopolitical ambitions of the US, the UK, and their satellites. 💬 From the briefing by Russia's Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova, (Moscow, March 20, 2025): NATO’s “humanitarian intervention” can serve as an example of modern barbarity and the rule-based world order and its backbone value: unfounded belief in its own superiority. <...> This is what Western democracy and freedoms look like. This view is still dominating in the West, where thousands of killed Yugoslavian civilians, including 89 children, are cynically called collateral damage. This is democracy with freedom of speech. The issue of the NATO allies’ responsibility for the damage they have done to international relations and Yugoslavia remains unresolved. 🕯 The brutal operation carried out against sovereign Yugoslavia 26 years ago is a tragedy inflicted upon the people of Yugoslavia by NATO warmongers with lasting and multifaceted consequences. #WeRemember#Yugoslavia1999

🌟#OnThisDay8️⃣0️⃣ years ago, on January 27, 1945, Auschwitz-Birkenau (Oswiecim, was located in Nazi-occupied Poland) — the most terrifying German extermination camp in #WWII — was liberated by the Red Army’s 1st Ukrainian Front during the Vistula–Oder offensive operation. #Auschwitz was created by the Nazis in 1940 in a building that used to serve as military barracks near a small town called Oswiecim, whose history dates back to the Austro-Hungarian Empire. Having occupied Poland in 1939, the Nazis changed the town's name of Oswiecim to German Auschwitz. Later, in 1941-1943, two more imprisonment facilities were established in the vicinity of Oswiecim. They were: ▪️Auschwitz II — best known to the wider public as #AuschwitzBirkenau, was three kilometres away from the main facility — Oswiecim and located near Brzezinka, a Polish village (Birkenau in German). Auschwitz-Birkenau was the largest "death factory". Equipped with crematoriums and gas chambers, it was created by the Nazis with only one aim — exterminate people. ▪️Auschwitz III (also known as Monowitz). Its prisoners were used by the Nazis for the Third Reich war industries. Following the so-called Wannsee Conference in 1942, the Nazis approved what was called the “final solution to the Jewish question”. Since then, Auschwitz-Birkenau was turned into the main "death factory" for the annihilation of Jews in Europe. ❗️ Prisoners of Oswiecim were held by the Nazis in inhuman, barbaric conditions. They had to do hard, exhausting work until total exhaustion, to endure poor sanitation in the camp's facilities, malnutrition and constant tortures by the guards and SS-troops. It was in Oswiecim that the Germans first tested the "Zyklon-B" poisonous agent on human beings. Prisoners of Auschwitz were also subjected to cruel medical experiments, led by a Nazi criminal, infamous retired military doctor Josef Mengele. In 1944, when the Red Army started the liberation of Europe, the Nazis, in an effort to cover the tracks of their crimes in Auschwitz, rushed to burn documents and destroy the camp's gas chambers, crematoriums, and deported as many prisoners as they could westward to other concentration camps deep in the Third Reich — over 58,000 prisoners were evacuated by the Nazis before Oswiecim and liberated by the Soviet forces in January, 1945. *** In January 1945, the units of the 1st Ukrainian Front launched the Vistula-Oder offensive and, successfully expelling the Nazis from Poland, finally reached Auschwitz. ⚔️ In the late hours of January 27, following three days of fighting the retreating enemy, the Red Army took over Oswiecim and opened the gatesofAuschwitz. The camp’s 7,000 prisoners were freed. Most of them were sick or suffering from extreme exhaustion and tortures. Rescued prisoners burst into tears of joy when they greeted their liberators. Some facilities of the camp were instantly made a hospital. According to various historic estimates, in 1940-1945, from 1.5 to 4 million people perished in Auschwitz-Birkenau. Over the past years, we are witnessing a campaign in several European countries, including Poland, to rewrite and falsify the history of WWII and, in particular, to erase the memory of the feat performed by the Soviet soldiers-liberators who saved the Auschwitz prisoners. 🎙 From a briefing by Russian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova on topical foreign policy issues (January 23, 2025): 💬 "This year, like all those years before, Russian representatives will not be invited to the commemoration ceremonies at Auschwitz-Birkenau on January 27. That is, there will be no one there to mention the Soviet liberator soldiers and express gratitude to them. In this regard, there is something that needs to be said to the organisers and all the Europeans who will be there: Your lives, your work and leisure, the very existence of your nations, your children have been paid for by Soviet soldiers, their lives, their blood. It was them who crushed the Third Reich machine. You are forever in their debt." 🕯#WeRemember

🕯December 3marks the Day of the Unknown Soldier in Russia, honouring the feat of all soldiers who perished for the Motherland, yet whose names remain unknown. #OnThisDay in 1966, to commemorate the 25th anniversary of the Red Army's victory over Nazi forces in theBattle of Moscow, a ceremony of the burial of the unknown soldiers' remains was held in the Alexander Garden near the walls of the Moscow Kremlin. These remains were originally located in a mass grave on the 41st kilometre of the Leningrad Highway and were discovered during construction activities on the road. Back in 1941, during the Battle of Moscow, this very place saw fierce and bloody battles between the Soviet forces and Nazi invaders. ▪️ On May 8, 1967, the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier in the Alexander Garden was unveiled. "Your name is unknown, your deed is immortal", — the worldwide famous words were inscribed upon the granite slab on the Tomb. Soviet newspapers noted back then: "...he [the Unknown Soldier] was slain for his Motherland, for his home — Moscow. This is all we know about him." 💬 Marshal of the Soviet Union Konstantin Rokossovsky remarked: "The Tomb of the Unknown Soldier near the ancient walls of the Moscow Kremlin shall serve as a monument of eternal glory to the heroes who died on the battlefield for their Motherland. Henceforth, the ashes of the one who shielded Moscow with his chest rest here". The Eternal Flame was set at the Tomb. In December of 1997, the Honor Guard was instituted near the Eternal Flame. In total, approximately two million Soviet and Russian citizens were reported missing in action during the wars and conflicts of the 20th and 21st centuries. The Russian Ministry of Defence carries out on a regular basis search operations to perpetuate the memory of heroes who perished for the Motherland. Russian diplomats abroad are engaged in extensive efforts aimed at preserving historical memory, countering attempts to distort the history of #WWII and to question the Great Victory of the Soviet people. The Embassies of Russia all across the world ensure the maintenance, repair and restoration of Soviet monuments and war graves. ❗️ Regrettably, as part of a disgraceful campaign to distort history of #WWII, a policy ofstate vandalism is being pursued in certain countries of Eastern Europe, in Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, and Poland in particular, with the one aim — to eradicate Russia's memorial heritage — the monuments to Soviet heroes and liberators. By order of the official authorities, criminal acts are being perpetrated in these countries to desecrate mass graves, when the remains of fallen soldiers are barbarically exhumed for the purpose of their subsequent "reburial in accordance with European practice" in specially designated locations. 🎗 It is prohibited for Russian compatriots in Europe, under the threat (!) of criminal prosecution, to pay tribute to heroes who fought against Nazism. The Russian MFA highlights these outrageous incidents. The memory of all who sacrificed their lives for our future is and will remain immortal. #WeRemember

🌟#OnThisDay in 1943, the Battle of Prokhorovka took place, the largest tank engagement in human history fought as part of the wider Battle of Kursk. In the fiercest moments of the fighting, up to 1,200 tanks and self-propelled artillery units were engaged simultaneously. By July 1943, a significant part of Soviet territory was still under Nazi control, but the potential of the Third Reich war machine was already running out. Trying to regain the initiative, the Wehrmacht command developed a summer offensive plan, codenamed Operation Citadel. The Nazis intended to destroy the Voronezh and Central fronts and crush the Red Army tank reserves near Prokhorovka, a village in the Belgorod Region. 🔻 By the night of July 9, German troops succeeded in cutting into the Voronezh Front defences, but their further advance was curbed. The German command then decided to try and break the Soviet defence line by striking at Prokhorovka, to reach Kursk from the south-east. To disrupt the offensive, the Voronezh Front command launched a counterattack on July 12, which went down in history as the Battle of Prokhorovka. On July 12, Germany’s 2nd SS Panzer Corps faced off against two Soviet forces, Alexey Zhadov’s 5th Guards Army and the 5th Guards Tank Army commanded by Pavel Rotmistrov in the vicinity of Prokhorovka. The battle was fought with varying success; both sides were forced to draw on reserves. ✍️ Soviet ace tanker Vasily Bryukhov recalled in his memoirs: “Strong explosions often made a tank just collapse, turn into a pile of metal in a matter of seconds. <...> The opponents were perfect matches for each other. They fought desperately, ferociously, with fierce abandon.” In every instance of the battle, the Red Army soldiers demonstrated unparalleled courage and extraordinary fighting skill. Thanks to their decisive actions, the enemy exhausted offensive opportunities and on July 16, began to withdraw its troops to the initial positions held at the beginning of the Battle of Kursk. The Red Army seized the strategic initiative and held it for the rest of the war. #Victory79#WeRemember

🗓 On June 8, 1920 — 104 years ago — the most successful ace pilot of the Anti-Hitler Coalition, Three-time Hero of the Soviet Union and to Marshal of Air Forces Ivan Kozhedub was born. ⚔️ Ivan Kozhedub achieved his first aerial victory at the age of 23, on July 6, 1943, during the Battle of Kursk. During his 40th combat sortie at Kursk, he engaged in a battle 12 enemy aircraft and shot down a Junkers Ju-87 Stuka dive-bomber, followed by another Stuka on July 7. On July 9, 1943, Kozhedub destroyed two Messerschmitt Me-109 fighters. On October 1-12, 1943, he shot down 14 German aircraft during dogfights over the Dnieper — a unique combat episode in the history of Soviet aviation. In August 1944, Kozhedub was appointed Deputy Commander of the 176th Guards Fighter Aircraft Regiment and started flying a new Lavochkin La-7 fighter. During the Great Patriotic War, Kozhedub flew 330 combat missions, engaged in 120 dogfights and shot down 62 enemy aircraft. After the Victory, he continued to serve with the Soviet Air Force and commanded a fighter aircraft division during the Korean War. Kozhedub was promoted to Air Marshal ahead of the 40th anniversary of the Great Victory. 🎖 Three-time Hero of the Soviet Union, Ivan Kozhedub received two Orders of Lenin, seven Orders of the Red Banner, one Order of Alexander Nevsky, one Order of the Great Patriotic War 1st Class, two Orders for of the Red Star, Orders for Service in the Soviet Armed Forces 2nd and 3rd Class, and multiple medals. #FacesOfVictory#WeRemember

🥇 The 872-day Siege of Leningrad was a harrowing ordeal for everyone who remained in the city. However, each resident of Leningrad contributed to the future victory through their hard work and fortitude. Every citizen, both young and old, actively participated in the defence of the city, extinguishing fires, clearing rubble, building fortifications, working at industrial enterprises, and helping the wounded. ❗️ All this happened against the backdrop of terrible exhaustionfrom hunger and constant shelling by the enemy. Children's diaries have a unique place in commemorating the resilience of ordinary people whose will to live triumphed over the oppression of the Third Reich. During this difficult time, some of the city’s children documented on paper the terrible events they witnessed day by day. 🕯 The most famous of these diaries was Tanya Savicheva's notebook, where six out of nine pages chronicle the dates of her relatives' deaths: her mother, grandmother, sister, brother and two uncles. Tragically, Tanya herself died during evacuation in the Gorky Region on July 1, 1944, at the age of 14. Keeping a diary helped these children cope with anxiety, fear and loss. Under the onslaught of hunger, constant shelling and bombing, and the death of loved ones, a piece of paper and a pencil provided solace and support. These written accounts offer invaluable insights into the experiences of people during those terrible 872 days of the Siege. 📚 Today, on the 80th Anniversary of the lifting of the Siege, we share excerpts from the diaries of children who witnessed those tragic events. #WeRemember