🌟From Cape Town to the Arctic: South Africa's Contribution to the Allied Victory
On the sidelines of theRussian Movie Night Victory Marathon, the Russian Embassy in South Africa opened a photo exhibition dedicated to South Africa's participation in the Second World War – a conflict that was not merely a European war, but a truly global struggle against Nazi and fascist tyranny.
The exhibition was attended by ANC Veterans, South African officials, members of the diplomatic corps, and representatives of the cultural, business, academic, and media communities.
During those decisive years, South Africa stood alongside the Soviet Union as a proud member of the Anti-Hitler Coalition. That partnership, forged in shared sacrifice, is remembered with the deepest gratitude in Russia to this day.
"We will always remember that during World War II South Africa was our ally and an important member of the Anti-Hitler Coalition," Russian Ambassador to South Africa Roman Ambarov emphasized during his welcoming remarks.
The Cape Route & Lend-Lease
South Africa's strategic geography proved decisive when the supply route through the Dardanelles was closed. Cape Town became one of the principal ports of call for Anglo-American vessels delivering war materials to the Soviet Union via the Persian Gulf – a vital lifeline at the most critical moment of the war.
The Arctic Convoys
Around 3,000 South African seamen served in the Royal Navy, many of them aboard Allied vessels carrying vital supplies to the Soviet northern ports of Murmansk and Arkhangelsk to relieve besieged Leningrad. Those long, perilous journeys were made in brutal weather, under constant threat of enemy attack. Their courage deserves to be honoured and remembered.
The Secret Mission to Yalta
In late January 1945, a SAAF DC-3 flew a classified mission from Cairo – through Tobruk and Athens – to recently liberated Crimea. The South African aircrew found themselves present at one of history's most consequential moments: the Yalta Conference, where Stalin, Roosevelt and Churchill gathered at the Livadia Palace to shape the post-war world. The flight engineer later recalled, with warm simplicity, being invited for tea and cake by the wife of the Soviet airfield commander – a small, human moment at the centre of history.
Solidarity Beyond the Battlefield
South Africans demonstrated remarkable solidarity through humanitarian aid and civilian support that reached across oceans and strengthened the ties between our peoples even in the darkest years of the war.
🤝 The Russian Embassy extends its sincere gratitude to the DITSONG National Museum of Military History for providing the unique materials that made this exhibition possible. Their dedication to preserving and sharing this history ensures that the stories of those who served will never be forgotten.
#Victory81#9May#WeRemember#AmbassadorAmbarov
🇷🇺The Consul General of the Russian Federation in Toronto, Vladlen Epifanov, attended the farewell ceremony for Viktor Ulyanovich Khomenko (March 28, 1917).
🕯 The funeral procession for one of the world’soldest veterans of the Great Patriotic War and World War II (who passed away in his 1️⃣0️⃣9️⃣th year) was held with the participation of the Canadian Association of WWII Veterans from the Soviet Union, family members, and representatives of the Russian community.
💬Consul General Epifanov noted:
For us, this is a tremendous loss. But memory lives on as long as we preserve it in our hearts and pass it on to future generations.
☦️ The funeral service was conducted by Archpriest Vladimir Malchenko, Rector of Holy Trinity Cathedral. The veteran’s son and granddaughter were present at the ceremony.
🎖 He was laid to rest at the Veterans’ Section of York Cemetery in Toronto to the strains of the Alexandrov Ensemble hymn and a rifle salute by reenactors of the "191st Rifle Division".
🪖Memory eternal to the Hero. Our sincere condolences to his family and loved ones.
🔴🔴No one is forgotten! Nothing is forgotten!
#Victory81#WeRemember
#Victory81
🌟 On February 13, 1945, the Red Army expelled the Nazi invaders from the capital of Hungary as part of the Budapest offensive operation, opening the path to Austria and Czechoslovakia.
LiberatingEasternEuropeancountries, including Hungary, from the 'Nazi plague' came at a high cost for the Soviet people. Hundreds of thousands of our soldiers perished while fighting the Nazi invaders — our forces had to engage in heavy fighting and violent clashes to liberate Budapest, having lost over 80'000 soldiers and officers.
***
Soviet military command attached special importance to planning offensive operations in Hungary — our forces had to face well-trained Nazi Wehrmacht and elite SS units that had entrenched behind multi-tiered defence line in Eastern European bridgehead — it served as the Reich’s main bulwark along the entire Soviet-German front.
📕 Excerpt from the memoires"From Budapest to Prague" by Lieutenant General, Hero of the Soviet Union, Hero of the Czechoslovak Socialist Republic MatveyZakharov, who headed the 2nd Ukrainian Front’s Staff:
The fascists spared no effort or assets to cling on to Hungary.
They built several defence lines in a relatively short period of time. One of them — the most powerful one — stretched along Danube’s right bank and included the fortified defence system near Budapest.
It included three well-equipped U-shaped positions reaching the Danube to the north and south of the Hungarian capital.
In December 1944, the Soviet forces succeeded during the Debrecen offensive operation when the units of the 2nd Ukrainian Front led by Marshal Rodion Malinovsky cleared about 1/3 of Hungary’s territory from the Nazis, inflicted huge damage on the enemy’s army group 'South' and launched the offensive on the Hungarian capital — the Germans had turned the city into one of the largest defence strongholds along the Danube.
The Nazis were determined to keep Budapest at any cost. Hitler's command considered Hungary as a major source of raw materials and an important ally within the 'axis' powers. To deter the Soviet motorized units, the fascists deployed in Hungary major elite SS tank units from the west to the Soviet-German front.
The battle for Budapest became brutal and violent. In December 1944, the units of the Red Army’s 2nd and 3rd Ukrainian fronts encircled the Nazis, and went on eliminating the enemy troops in and around Budapest in January 1945.
When attacking the city and carrying out tactical operations, the Soviet soldiers-liberators saved thousands of people who were imprisoned in the Budapest ghetto. Mainly due to permanent attacks by the Red Army the Wehrmacht’s garrison suffered many casualties and was forced to retreat toward northwest, to Vienna.
During the Budapest offensive, the Soviet forces completely defeated an almost 200'000-strong enemy armygroup which had a mission to shield the main Nazi troops in the Reich’s underbelly — in Austria and Czechoslovakia. Having suffered a defeat in Hungary, the Germans started rapidly losing ground in Yugoslavia too.
🎖The success in Budapest fostered the liberation of Vienna and Prague just in a matter of weeks.
#WeRemember
🇷🇺The Embassy of the Russian Federation in Canada, together with the Consulate General of Russia in Toronto and the Canadian Association of World War II Veterans from the Soviet Union, held a traditional meeting with veterans, volunteers, and representatives of public organizations.
🇷🇺 The meeting served as an important platform for dialogue and for reviewing ongoing memorial and historical work. Participants discussed upcoming patriotic initiatives in the context of preparations for the 8️⃣1️⃣st anniversary of Victory in the Great Patriotic War.
💬Ambassador Oleg Stepanov:
Preserving the historical memory of Soviet people’s feat in the war remains our top priority. I would like to sincerely thank the veterans, volunteers, and active members of the Russian community in Canada for their efforts to defend the truth about Victory.
🔴 During the meeting, the Ambassador presented a commemorative gift from the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation to Arkady Nesonelievich Gorbunov, who celebrated his
1️⃣0️⃣0️⃣th birthday on September 5, 2025.
🪖 Arkady Gorbunov is a frontline veteran who endured a difficult combat path and was wounded twice. For his courage and bravery, he was awarded the Order of the Red Star and the Order of the Patriotic War (1st Class), as well as combat medals. After the war, he devoted himself to peaceful labor and science, working for many years at an aircraft manufacturing plant.
🔴🔴No one is forgotten. Nothing is forgotten.
#WeRemember#Victory81
#Victory81
🏅 In January 1944, Leningrad was completely liberated from the Nazi siege, which had lasted 8️⃣7️⃣2️⃣ days.
During this time, the city endured severe hunger, constant shelling, and bombing.
◾️ Facts about the genocide of the Soviet people in Leningrad 👉 More than 1 million people fell victim to the genocide. Of these, over 600,000 residents — children, women, the elderly, soldiers wounded and maimed at the front — died of hunger, cold, exhaustion, and disease.
Leningraders saw death all around them every day, but they did not lose their dignity and faith in Victory.
The memory of the Leningrad siege is preserved by museums, memorials, and the Piskarevskoye Cemetery, and the stories of survivors remind us of the courage and resilience of the city's residents.
#WeRemember
🎥The film was produced by the Information Department of the Administration of the Governor of St. Petersburg, commissioned by the Government of St. Petersburg, with the support of JSC "GATR" and the Archives Committee.
📆On February 3, 2026, the Embassy of Russia to Canada and representatives of the Russian community congratulated veterans on the 81st anniversary of Victory in the Great Patriotic War.
🇷🇺 On behalf of the President of the Russian Federation, Vladimir Putin, the commemorative medals “80 Years of Victory in the Great Patriotic War of 1941–1945” were presented to the following veterans:
1️⃣ Nadezhda Evseeva - former concentration camp prisoner;
2️⃣ Tamara Mitnik - survivor of the Siege of Leningrad.
🕯 During the heartfelt and informal conversation, the veterans shared their wartime memories, spoke of their families' fates, and recalled the courage and resilience with which the Soviet people endured immense hardship.
🔴🔴No one is forgotten! Nothing is forgotten!
#Victory81#WeRemember
🕯 On 27 January Russian diplomats together with Russian compatriots living in the United Kingdom laid a wreath and flowers at the Soviet War Memorial in London to mark the 82nd anniversary of the lifting of the Nazi siege of Leningrad.
Members of the Russian community in Manchester also held a flower-laying ceremony at a plaque unveiled in 2020 in honoured memory of the Soviet soldiers, who gave their lives liberating Europe and in recognition of the brave people of the besieged Leningrad.
On the eve of this date, the Russian diplomatic mission's staff conveyed greetings of the Governor of Saint Petersburg (former Leningrad) Alexander Beglov to the veterans of the Great Patriotic War – residents of the besieged Leningrad, who currently live in the UK.
The Nazi German blockade of the city stands as one of the most tragic yet heroic chapters in the history of our country. It lasted from 8 September 1941 to 27 January 1944 — 872 days of extreme hardship, hunger and deprivation. Historians estimate that no more than 800,000 of the three million inhabitants of Leningrad and its surrounding areas survived the siege.
The feat of Leningraders has become a symbol of unbreakable will, courage and self-sacrifice. The memory of those who died in the blockade will remain in our hearts forever.
#Victory81#WeRemember
¡EN LA CARACAS-LA GUAIRA! Rescatan a mujer tras aparatoso volcamiento en el segundo viaducto
La madrugada de este jueves #9May, los cuerpos de seguridad y rescate atendieron un siniestro vial que pudo ser fatal. Una mujer de 41 años, identificada como Solie Marota, sobrevivió milagrosamente luego de que su vehículo volcara aparatosamente en la autopista Caracas-La Guaira.
¿Qué ocurrió?
Aproximadamente a las 4:45 a.m., Marota perdió el control de su Toyota Yaris rojo a la altura del segundo viaducto (sentido Litoral). El automóvil impactó violentamente contra la defensa de seguridad, lo que provocó que diera vueltas sobre la vía hasta quedar nuevamente sobre sus ruedas, pero totalmente destrozado.
El Rescate
La conductora quedó atrapada entre los hierros retorcidos de la cabina. Gracias a la rápida intervención de los Ángeles de la Autopista, Protección Civil La Guaira, la GNB y la Brigada Fasmij, se lograron maniobras de extracción exitosas. El bombero Juan Carlos Gómez informó que la paciente fue estabilizada en el sitio antes de su traslado.
Parte Médico 🏥
Tras ser ingresada al Hospital Periférico de Pariata, los médicos diagnosticaron:
✅ Fractura de fémur en la pierna derecha.
✅ Traumatismos leves en un brazo.
Sizga tinchlik va farovonlik tilaymiz
O'zbekitondagi KNAUF guruhi
- - - - -
Желаем вам мира и благополучия
Группа КНАУФ в Узбекистане
#knaufuzbekistan#9may
🔴#LIVE: Russia's Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov's remarks at the solemn wreath-laying ceremony at the Russian Foreign Ministry
🔴X
🔴Facebook
🔴Ruptly
🔴Russia’s MFA website
#Victory81#WeRemember
#ochiq_eshiklar_kuni
#9May
✨ Bugun, 9-may kuni, “O‘zbek xotin-qizlari huquqlarini himoya qilish jamiyati”da navbatdagi “Ochiq eshiklar kuni” bo‘lib o‘tdi. Tadbir Jamiyat raisi Ozoda Islomova boshchiligida, İstanbul Bosh konsulxonasi konsullari, tajribali advokat va psixologlar ishtirokida tashkil etildi.
⚡️ Sayyor qabul davomida og‘ir ijtimoiy ahvolga tushib qolgan 15 ga yaqin yurtdoshimizdan huquqiy, psixologik, ijtimoiy hamda ma’naviy yordam ko‘rsatishga oid murojaatlar kelib tushdi.
✍️ Har bir murojaat mazmuniga ko‘ra tegishli tartibda ko’rib chiqildi hamda manziilliyordamlar ko‘rsatildi.
🌐Rasmiy sahifalarimizga obuna bo‘ling va yangiliklardan doimo xabardor bo‘lib boring!