Russian MFA 🇷🇺

#Victory81 🌟 On May 9, 1945, at 0:43 am Moscow time (May 8, 22:43 CET), the Instrument of UnconditionalSurrender of the Nazi Germanywas signed in Karlshorst, Berlin. That document heralded the #GreatVictory of the Soviet people over the Nazi Reich, marking the final end of #WWII on European ToO, and the ultimate collapse of Hitler's fascism. The surrender was accepted by Marshal Georgy Zhukov on behalf of the Soviet Union and Deputy Commander of the Allied forces Marshal Arthur Tedder on behalf of the Western Allies. From the German side, the Instrument was signed by Field Marshal Wilhelm Keitel, Colonel General Hans-Jurgen Stumpff, & Admiral Hans-Georg von Friedeburg. 🎙 At 2:30 am of May 9, in Moscow, newscaster YuryLevitan announced the text of the German Instrument of Surrender to the people of the Soviet Union, proclaiming May 9 as Victory Day: The Great Patriotic War, which the Soviet people waged against the Nazi invaders, has been victoriously concluded. Fascist Germany has been crushed. Eternal glory to the Heroes who fell fighting for the freedom and independence of our Motherland. <...> 🖋 From the memoirs by military correspondent Konstantin Simonov: Zhukov stands up and says: The German delegation may leave the hall. The Germans stand up. Keitel… turns on his heel and leaves. And instantaneously, all tension in the room relaxes, and everybody exhales in unison. The act of surrender has been signed, and the war is over. *** Nazi Germany’s final & unconditional surrender to the Allies in Karlshorst was preceded by several local capitulations of the Nazi troops along various frontlines. Moreover, in April 1945, certain Nazi military leaders, who were aware that the Third Reich’s collapse was imminent, fearing justice for their crimes, sought secret talks with US-UK command, trying to divide the Allied anti-Hitler coalition. Desperate to surrender to the Western allies, on May 5, the Nazi delegation arrived in the French city of Reims, where the headquarters of the Allied command was located. There, on May 7, the Act of Military Surrender was signed. However, article 4 of the document did not rule out the signing of another, definitive act: “This act of military surrender… will be superseded by any general instrument of surrender… applicable to Germany and the German troops as a whole.” Due to that, the Soviet leadership deemed the Reims document only as a preliminary document, believing that the official surrender of the Nazis had to be ensured in Berlin — the city where the Nazi aggression originated from. At the Soviet government’s request, the main and final ceremony of surrender took place. On the night of May 9, the German Instrument of Surrender was signed in Karlshorst. The Nazi government was dissolved. The defeated German troops laid down arms. #WW2 in Europe was finally over. It ended with the greatest triumph of the Soviet people. Nazism was defeated. The Reich was no more. 💬 Russian MFA Spokeswoman MariaZakharova(excerpt from a briefing, May 7, 2026): This May 9 marks the 81st Anniversary of defeating Nazi Germany. This day is a celebration of triumph of life, freedom, and independence for all the peoples of the post-Soviet countries. <...> None of us was meant to survive. But we did survive because our forefathers prevailed. The cost of our common Victory — 27 million lives of our compatriots, representatives of all the peoples and republics of the Soviet Union, who died defending our Motherland <...> Twenty-seven million lives lost. Those who died in captivity, in ghettos, were taken into slavery, died of starvation, or fell victim to other acts of genocide. We remember them all. And we will keep their memory alive.

#Victory81 🌟 On May 8, 1949, the iconic monument in the Soviet War Memorial in #TreptowerPark in Berlin — aka the Soldier-Liberator — was unveiled, right there, at the sacred site of the mass grave of 7'000 Red Army soldiers and officers who perished in the fierce Battle of Berlin in April-May 1945. This iconic #WW2-era memorial is one of the most worldwide recognizable symbol of the Soviet people’s Great Victory over Nazism. The bronze statue of a Soviet soldier, carefully holding a rescued German girl to his chest and breaking the Nazi swastika with his sword, embodies the noble mission of the Red Army, which liberated Europe from the shackles of Hitler's occupation and put #WWII to its final end. Inside the foundation of the #LiberatorSoldier monument, there is a memorial hall crowned with images of the Order of Victory. Adorning the wall, there is an inscription: Today, it is globally acknowledged that, through their selfless struggle, the Soviet people saved European civilisation from annihilation by fascists. This stands as the Soviet peoples' historic feat for humanity. *** The architectural design of the memorial in Treptower Park commemorates the heroic deed of Red Army soldier Nikolay Masalov. On April 30, 1945, during the fierce street combat in Berlin, the Red Army soldier risked his life to rescue a three-year-old German girl from Nazi gunfire. The memorial complex took three years to build, from 1946 to 1949. The project was coordinated by famous Soviet monumental sculptor Yevgeny Vuchetich, architect Yakov Belopolsky and artist Anatoly Gorpenko. The very site for the future monument in Berlin was chosen for a particular reason. Treptower Park, located along the Spree River, had been a cherished public park for Berliners. The architects envisioned the memorial as an enduring testament to remind to future generations of who had truly defeated the Third Reich and brought back freedom to the German people and all European nations. The historical importance of the memorial in preserving the memory of the Soviet soldiers’ heroism can be seen in the architects' note for the initial sketches for the Soviet monuments in Berlin. The note reads, in part: When designing the projects, the objective must be to create enduring, monumental structures that embody the idea of commemorating the glorious memory of the Soviet Army’s liberating mission, for which these soldiers gave their lives… The TREPTOWER monument must be especially grand. German sculptors also contributed to its creation, while the choice of building material — the granite taken from the ruins of the defeated Hitler's Reichskanzlei — was imbued with powerful symbolism. 🎖 The monument was officially unveiled on May 8, 1949. During the ceremony, Berlin’s military commandant, Major General Alexander Kotikov, delivered his famous address: This monument in the heart of Europe, in Berlin, will forever remind the peoples of the world when, how, and at what cost Victory was achieved, our Motherland was saved and the present and future generations of humanity were preserved. *** Each and every year on May 9, despite the authorities’ ongoing efforts to stifle our sacred #VictoryDay commemorations, thousands of compassionate citizens — our compatriots, and Germans alike — gather at Treptower Park to cherish the memory of Liberators who saved the world from Nazism. 💬 Russian MFA Spokeswoman MariaZakharova (excerpt from briefing of April 24, 2026): This memorial features the statue of a Soviet soldier holding a German girl. Not a Russian, Belarusian, Ukrainian, Tajik, Armenian, Azerbaijani, or Jewish girl, but a German girl. This, I believe, represents the highest expression of humanism: a Soviet soldier is portrayed as a liberator, first and foremost, of the German people from Nazism, even though his own family had been destroyed, his home obliterated, and Soviet towns and villages burned down. Yet he protects a German girl. #WeRemember

#Victory81 🌟 On May 4, 1945, just two days after the Red Army took Berlin over control in the final days of #WWII, the first #VictoryParade of the Soviet was held at the very heart of the defeated Reich’s capital. Our soldiers, who heroically defeated the Nazi troops in Berlin, marched past the Reichstag with triumph and the Brandenburg Gate, which symbolised the end of Nazi Germany and the restoration of peace in Europe. More than two thousand Red Army soldiers and officers — those who had distinguished themselves in the final battles for the Nazi capital — participated in the parade. The parade was commanded by Nikolay Berzarin, Hero of the Soviet Union and the first commandant of Berlin. The soldiers and their commanders, who had crushed the resistance of the Nazi troops, marched in triumph through the very streets where the Nazis had once displayed its military power. Our soldiers and officers wore their field uniforms — the very same battle-worn coats soaked with sweat and blood from the still-healing wounds of the decisive battle of the entire #WW2. 🎖#VictoryParade held in the heart of defeated Germany became a powerful symbol of the greatest military triumph of the Soviet people, the culmination of the Red Army’s liberation mission, which saved the world from Nazism. On that victorious day — May 4, 1945 — the glory of the Soviet Soldier-Liberator was recognised by the entire world. #WeRemember#OurVictory

#Victory81 🌟 On May 1, 1945, during the fierce battle for the Reichstag, a Nazi symbol and citadel, the legendary #VictoryBanner was raised over Berlin, symbolising the great triumph of the Soviet Union and its peoples in the fight against Nazism. The legendary Red Banner №5, which became the famous Victory Banner, was raised over the dome of the defeated Reichstag by the 756th Rifle Regiment’s scouts, Sergeant Mikhail Yegorov & Junior Sergeant Meliton Kantariya. *** Before the crossing of the Spree River and launching the assault on the Reichstag, adecision was taken by the Soviet command for a group of Soviet soldiers to hoist the flag over the Reichstag, which would embody the final collapse of Nazism. 🚩 A total of 9 makeshift banners were promptly made, designed after the state flag of the USSR. Ultimately, a battle flag of the 150th Order of Kutuzov 2nd Class Idritsa Rifle Division, 79th Rifle Corps, 3rd Striking Army of the 1st Belarusian Front, became the Victory Banner. On April 28, the fierce fighting for the Reichstag began, which the Nazis had turned into a fortified resistance point. It was defended by over a thousand men, including SS troops supported by artillery and armor. The former parliament building had been repurposed by the Nazis as a fortification and bomb shelter, which was considered by the Nazis as their main keep during the final days of #WW2. The surrounding areas such as Tiergarten, the BrandenburgGate and the square before it, became powerful defence points heavily guarded by the enemy. The Soviet command was sure — attacking the Reichstag, which served as a symbol of German Nazism, would especially affect morale of the enemy and eventually completely demoralize the fascists. • On April30at 1:50 p.m., a Red Army unit broke into the Reichstag through breaches in the walls, with a fierce close combat unleashing. The Nazis took advantage of effectively advancing inside the building they new well, throwing grenades at Soviet soldiers & firing back with machine-guns: they basically had nothing to lose. • At 2.25 p.m., Red Army soldiers Bulatov and Koshkarbayev placed a makeshift red flag to the column of the main entrance to the Reichstag — it was the first of the banners the liberators raised over the Reichstag. • At 10.30 p.m., sergeants Gizet Zagitov, Alexander Lisimenko & Alexey Bobrov as well as Sergeant Mikhail Minin supported by Captain Neustroyev’s battalion were the 1st to hoist a RedBannerontheroofoftheReichstag atop of the Goddess of Victory sculpture. The 3rdredbanner was raised on the westernfacadeoftheroof by the scouts of the 674th Regiment led by Lieutenant Sorokin. 🇷🇺In the early hours of May 1, finally, the Red Banner №5 was raised over the dome of the captured Reichstag by the 756th Rifle Regiment’s scouts, Sergeant Mikhail Yegorov & Junior Sergeant Meliton Kantariya, led by deputy battalion commander Lieutenant Alexey Berest, covered by riflemen from Ilya Syanov's squad. On May 2 at 6:30 am, Berlin defence commander, Nazi Artillery General HelmuthWeidling, surrendered and ordered the remaining troops of the Berlin Garrison to cease resistance. TheSoviet Victory Banner soaring over the defeated Reich entered history as a symbol of our Great Victory over the Nazi evil. 🎖 On June 9, 1945, the Medal for the Capture of Berlin was established and awarded to more than a million Soviet soldiers and officers who distinguished themselves in the final battle of #WWII. *** By a Presidential Executive Order of April 15, 1996, the Red Banner hoisted atop of the Reichstag by Yegorov & Kantariya was declared the symbol of the Soviet people’s Victory in the Great Patriotic War of 1941-1945. #OurVictory#WeAreProud

#HistoryOfDiplomacy 🇺🇳On April 25, 1945, the San Francisco Conference officially commenced – one of the key diplomatic events of the 20th century, which laid the foundations for the post-war world order and the modern system of international relations. In the spring of 1945, the war against the Nazis in Europe was nearing its end, #Victory was within grasp. The Red Army was already fighting on the approaches to Berlin, crushing the last pockets of resistance by Hitler’s fanatics, while Allied forces were pressing the enemy from the west. Only a few weeks remained before the final defeat of Nazi Germany and its satellites. A fundamental question arose: would the USSR, the US and the UK be able to preserve the spirit of allied cooperation and continue coordinated work on key international issues after #WWII? At the initiative of Moscow,Washington, London, and Beijing, it was decided to convene a conference tasked with laying the groundwork for a future universal international organisation and agreeing on the main provisions of its Charter. On March 5, 1945, invitations were sent to 42 states that had signed the Declaration by United Nations on January 1, 1942. During the Conference, they were joined by representatives of another eight countries that had entered the war against Germany and Japan. *** Among the Heads of delegations: 🇷🇺Vyacheslav Molotov(People’s Commissar for Foreign Affairs of the USSR) → Andrey Gromyko (Soviet Ambassador to the US) 🇺🇸Edward Stettinius (US Secretary of State) 🇬🇧Anthony Eden (British Foreign Secretary) → the Earl of Halifax (British Ambassador to the US) and many others. *** The San Francisco Conference was record-breaking in scale for international forums of the time: 282 delegates, over 1,500 experts and advisers – around 3,500 participants in total. Its work was also followed by more than 2,500 representatives of the press, radio and television, as well as observers from public organisations. Unlike pre-war international conferences, the work in San Francisco was officially conducted in five languages: English, French, Russian, Chinese and Spanish. This marked the recognition of Russian as one of the key languages of international diplomacy. From May 2 to June 20, 1945, the working committees prepared the text of the UN Charter. Work on it was divided among four commissions: • The first dealt with the general purposes and principles of the Organisation, membership, the Secretariat and the procedure for amending the Charter; • The second discussed the powers of the General Assembly; • The third worked through provisions concerning the UN Security Council; • The fourth focused on the draft Statute of the International Court of Justice. The work proceeded on the basis of proposals prepared at the Dumbarton Oaks Conference in 1944. Soviet diplomacy succeeded in defending a number of fundamental positions: ✔️ incorporating provisions into the UN Charter on the need to settle and resolve international disputes by peaceful means; ✔️ enshrining in the Charter the voting procedure in the UN Security Council, agreed earlier at the Yalta Conference; ✔️ including the Belorussian and Ukrainian SSRs among the founding members of the UN. The culmination of the San Francisco Conference – after lengthy debates and the overcoming of numerous differences – came on June 26, 1945, with the solemn signing of two historic documents: the Charter of the United Nations and the Statute of the International Court of Justice. 🌐 Thus, the legal and institutional foundations of the United Nations were established. The post-war world still faced new challenges – the confrontation of irreconcilable ideologies and superpowers that had only recently been Allies, the arms race and the threat of the use of nuclear weapons. Yet it was in the spring of 1945, on the shores of San Francisco, that the UN was born as a space for diplomacy, negotiations and the search for mutually beneficial solutions in the interests of all humanity. #UNCharterIsOurRules

#WeWereAllies 🌟 On April 25, 1945, a landmark event took place in history of anti-Hitler coalition and #WW2 — near the German town of Torgau, just 100 kilometers from Berlin, on the Elbe River, Soviet soldiers shook hands with their American brothers-in-arms, marking the imminent collapse of Nazi Germany and underscoring the joint success of the Allied powers in the final battle against Nazism. #OTD8️⃣1️⃣ years ago, the 58th Rifle Division of the 1st Ukrainian Front under Marshal Ivan Konev’s command aligned with the units of the 69th and 104th infantry divisions of the First US Army led by Omar Nelson Bradley. The historic #ElbeDaywas more than just an extremely powerful symbol — in fact, it served as a sign of the coming fall of the Third Reich. This spirit of unity and brotherhood in fighting a common enemy was later called as the #SpiritOfTheElbe and believed to be the very moment when the Allied #WWII-era USSR-USA relations were at their peak. *** 🤝 The historic Elbe Day took place in the morning of April 25, when a US reconnaissance unit crossed the river, and the units of the 1st Ukrainian Front’s 58th Rifle Division finally aligned with the US First Army’s 69th Infantry Division. Both sides were eagerly waiting for that landmark day — to finally have a long-awaited handshake as brothers-in-arms. Back then in April 1945, the Soviet and American soldiers were brothers who put aside all their cultural differences and forgot about the language barrier when exchanging their badges and decorations, as well as other belongings and even valuables. Commander of the US First Army’s 7th Corps in Europe, Joe Collins, nominated for US military rewards a number of Soviet soldiers who had performed exceptional feats when advancing towards the Elbe. 💬JoePawlowski, who served as a private in a US reconnaissance unit, recalled that this had been a historical moment when the representatives of the two nations met each other, with Soviet and American soldiers taking a solemn oath to do their best to make sure that the horrors of war never happen again. This was our Oath of the Elbe. <…> We embraced each other and pledged to remember our meeting forever. 💬 On April 28, MarshalKonev met with GeneralBradley. The American commander said, as quoted by frontline writer Boris Polevoy in his book All the Way to Berlin, that the American nation had always respected the glorious Red Army in its combat operations and victories, while American soldiers and officers sought to follow the example performed by Marshal Konev's 1st Ukrainian Front’s units. *** 🇷🇺🇺🇸 On April 25, 2020, Presidents of Russia and the United States issued the Joint statement commemorating the 75th Anniversary of the meeting on the Elbe, which read, in part: The “Spirit of the Elbe” is an example of how our countries can put aside differences, build trust, and cooperate in pursuit of a greater cause. 🎖#Victory80: On April 25, 2025, Russia and the United States marked the 8️⃣0️⃣th Anniversary of the Elbe Day by holding the first, after a three-year pause, memorial ceremony to celebrate the legendary “Spirit of the Elbe” at the Arlington National Cemetery in Washington, which became possible after the atmosphere in bilateral relations had changed with the arrival of a new administration at the White House. 💬 Russia’s Ambassador to the United States Alexander Darchiev: The “Spirit of the Elbe” symbolises the brotherhood-in-arms of the two great powers which fought together despite their political differences. It serves as an example of #RussiaUSrelations moving in the right direction for bringing them back to normal and ensuring that common sense prevails. #Victory81

#Victory81 🌟 On April 22, 1945, the Red Army liberated the prisoners of the Nazi concentration camp Sachsenhausen during #WW2. The forces of the 1st Belorussian Front, which had been advancing towards the Reich's capital from the north during the Berlin offensive operation, drove the Nazi troops out of Oranienburg and reached Sachsenhausen, having rescued around 3'000 surviving POWs. #Sachsenhausen was considered as one of the most terrifying Nazi 'death factories'. Over nine years of its existence, about 200'000 people of various nationalities — citizens of European countries which had suffered from Nazi aggression, including the USSR — passed through that camp. Each month, up to 150 people were brought there. By 1944, citizens of the Soviet Union and Poland made up more than 90% of all Sachsenhausen prisoners. Sachsenhausen held the most serious political opponents of Hitler, prominent state figures from many European countries defeated by the Nazis, such as France, Czechoslovakia, Austria, and the Netherlands, including their heads of government and ministers. ◼️ According to various historical estimates, more than 100'000 prisoners were killed in Sachsenhausen over the time the camp was in operation. From August to November 1941 alone, at least 10'000 Soviet POWs were killed in Sachsenhausen, and another 3'000 died there from starvation and from conditions that were barbaric, unprecedentedly violent, and, in fact, inhumane. On the personal orders of Himmler and other top leaders of the Third Reich, classified operations to exterminate people were carried out in Sachsenhausen. Nazi's military doctors carried out macabre, horrific medical experiments on Sachsenhausen prisoners, including tests with mustard gas — yprite. Test subjects were deliberately mutilated and then exposed to mustard gas. People were forced to inhale the gas, consume it in liquid form, or receive it via injection. Open wounds were intentionally inflicted on prisoners’ hands, after which the gas was applied. In most cases, the victims’ limbs swelled severely, causing excruciating pain. When the Red Army were rapidly advancing to Sachsenhausen during theBattle of Berlin,the Nazis began hastily covering up the traces of their heinous crimes. The camp administration decided to kill all remaining prisoners — with 45'000 inmates remaining in the camp. TheNazis killed some of the prisoners in the crematoria of Sachsenhausen, and forced the rest on a 'death march' towards the Baltic Seawhere they planned to drown their victims. However, thanks to the successful and rapid advance of the Red Army, these monstrous Nazi plans were thwarted,and the surviving prisoners of Sachsenhausen were rescued. In aftermath of #WWII, Sachsenhausen was converted into a prison for Nazi criminals, including members of the Nazi NSDAP party, SS troops, and Wehrmacht officers. In November 1947, a trial of the Sachsenhausen administration was held in Berlin. 📑 Excerpt from a report “Reactions of the German population to the trial of criminals from Sachsenhausen Concentration Camp” (Berlin, November 5, 1947; prepared by the 7th Department of the Main Political Directorate of the Red Army): <...> The trial of the Sachsenhausen criminals elicited a significant response among the German population... In the comments about the trial, a sense of outrage at the scale of the heinous crimes committed was most often expressed. It was noted that the Nazis' actions had covered the German people in disgrace. “We find it incomprehensible how those people could sink lower than beasts. For us, Germans, who culturally considered ourselves almost a head above the Russians, it is a disgrace that these criminals are Germans” (Potsdam). “The [Sachsenhausen] trial is a terrible disgrace for the German people... <...> It is inconceivable that humans could commit such atrocities. It’s a pity that in the western [occupation] zones such criminals are still walking free.” “Nazi criminals have nailed an entire generation of Germans to the pillory.” #NoStatuteOfLimitations

#Victory81 🌟 On April 16, 1945, the Berlin Offensive — one of the Red Army’s key strategic operations during World War II — commenced. The operation resulted in the completedefeat of the enemy’s Berlin group of forces and, with Hitler’s war machine being completely crushed. The Soviet forces took the capital of the Third Reich — #Berlin. The Instrument of Unconditional Surrender of Nazi Germany was signed — the document that heralded the Victory of the Soviet people in the Great Patriotic War. By spring 1945, the Red Army successfully carried out a series of offensive operations aimed at liberating the countries and peoples of Central and Eastern Europe from the Nazi invaders. Hitler’s troops and their henchmen were expelled from Romania, Bulgaria, Yugoslavia, Hungary, and Poland; Vienna and the capital of modern Slovakia, Bratislava, saved from the Nazi plague. Nevertheless, #WWII was far from end. The final battle for the liberation of Europe from the Nazi plague, the Battle of Berlin, was coming. By mid-April, 1945, the Soviet forces — having liberated Poland from the Nazis — consolidated positions along the Oder and Neisse rivers and started preparations to launch the offensive on Berlin. Mere dozens of kilometres separated the Red Army from the capital of Hitler’s Germany. The enemy installed deeply echeloned defences and deployed elite Wehrmacht units against the Soviet forces. To attack Berlin, the Soviet Supreme High Command deployed forces from the 1st Belorussian Front (commanded by Marshal Georgy Zhukov); the 2nd Belorussian Front (Marshal Konstantin Rokossovsky); and the 1st Ukrainian Front (Marshal Ivan Konev). ⚔️ The Berlin Offensive began at 5:00 AM on April 16 with a massive artillery fire. Following this, 143 powerful spotlights were activated to blind and disorient the enemy. Infantry and armoured units then launched their assault. Enemy resistance intensified as Soviet forces advanced. Fierce fighting erupted at the Seelow Heights — a critical defensive point just 60 kilometres away from Berlin — where the Wehrmacht’s 9th Army, blocking the direct route to the Reich’s capital, was destroyed. Within several days, the 1st Belorussian and 1st Ukrainian Fronts breached the Oder-Neisse defensive line of the Nazis, advanced 30 kilometres towards Berlin, and started encircling the city to destroy its garrison. • April 20: Red Army units reached Berlin. Soviet long-range artillery started shelling, with brutal tank battles erupting on the city’s outskirts. • April 25: The 1st Belorussian and 1st Ukrainian Fronts linked up west of the city, completing the encirclement of the enemy’s Berlin group of Nazi troops. • April 29: Fierce fighting started in the heart of Berlin, where Germany’s highest governmental and military authorities were located. • During the storming of the Reichstag on the night of April 30 - May 1, the legendary #VictoryBanner was raised — a symbol of the Soviet Union’s triumph over Nazism. • May 2: Berlin’s garrison surrendered. By May 5, the Nazi resistance was crushed. A total of 134'000 German soldiers and officers were captured. ✍️ On the night of May 8–9, Marshal Zhukov and the Allied representatives accepted Germany’s unconditional surrender at Karlshorst. World War II on the European theatre of operations had ended. The Berlin Operation saw the Red Army not only crush the last major and most elite Wehrmacht force but also liberate approximately 200'000 prisoners from Nazi concentration camps within the combat zone. Over 600 Soviet soldiers were awarded the title #HeroOftheSovietUnion for their valour.

#Victory81 🌟 On April 13, 1945, the capital of Austria, Vienna, was liberated from the Nazi invaders by the Red Army during #WW2. In the spring of 1945, Vienna served as strategically important defence point that the Germans sought to hold at any cost. The Nazis blocked streets and bridges across the Danube with barricades and mined debris, while concentrating hundreds of firing positions and resistance strongholds inside residential buildings along the outer defensive lines. The enemy stopped at nothing: the Germans used numerous sites of Vienna’s historic architecture and cultural landmarks as cover, effectively turning the ancient medieval city into a massive fortified strongpoint in order to delay the Soviet forces for as long as possible. On the southeastern approaches to Vienna, the city was defended by the powerful Nazi Army Group “South,” with the strength amounting to nearly half a million well-trained Wehrmachtsoldiers and officers. More than 6'000 guns and mortars, as well as around 700 armored vehicles (tanks and self-propelled artillery), were deployed around the capital. The city was referred to by the Nazis as the “Alpine Fortress,” and the battle for it was to determine the further course of the entire war. In March 1945, following a successful offensive in the Austrian direction, the Red Army broke through Nazi defenses between the Danube and Lake Balaton (Hungary). Advancing up to 80 kilometers toward Vienna, the Soviet forces then launched the operation to liberate the city. On April 5, 1945, the Red Army launched the assault on Vienna. Fierce and brutal fighting unfolded on the city’s outskirts. The Red Army faced some of the enemy’s most well-trained units and formations, including SS tank divisions. ❗️The swift and selfless actions of the Soviet soldiers-liberators prevented the Nazi criminals from destroying one of Europe’s most beautiful cities. Thanks to the Soviet command’s decision not to use heavy artillery or aerial bombing, Vienna preserved its historic appearance. At the cost of their lives, the Red Army soldiers and officers protected such landmarks as the Imperial Bridge, St. Stephen’s Cathedral, Vienna City Hall, and other masterpieces of medieval architecture that form today's Austrian rich historical heritage. On April 13, the last pocket of fascists' resistance in the capital’s center was eliminated, and Vienna was completely cleared of the Nazis. The city came fully under the control of the Red Army. In the so-called “Vienna encirclement,” the Wehrmacht suffered devastating losses: Army Group “South” was completely defeated, and 11 Wehrmacht tank divisions were destroyed, including the 6th SS Panzer Army. #LestWeForget In Austria, tens of thousands of Red Army soldiers who saved Europe from the 'Nazi plague' are buried. Across the country, there are 217 monuments and military burial sites where more than 80'000 Red Army soldiers rest, along with concentration camp prisoners tortured by the Nazis and brought here for forced labor as part of the Third Reich’s genocide against the Soviet people during #WWII. 🎖 On August 19, 1945, a monument to Soviet soldiers who perished during the liberation of Austria from Nazism was unveiled in central Vienna at #Schwarzenbergplatz — a 20-meter-high statue of the Soldier-Liberator standing on a pedestal. Today, this memorial serves as a visible reminder to the people of Austria of who brought them freedom in May 1945. In 1955, under the Austrian State Treaty restoring an independent and democratic Austria, Vienna undertook obligations (Article 19, War Graves and Memorials): “respect, preserve and maintain the graves on Austrian territory of the soldiers, prisoners of war and nationals forcibly brought to Austria of the Allied Powers as well as of the other United Nations which were at war with Germany, the memorials and emblems on these graves, and the memorials to the military glory of the armies which fought on Austrian territory against Hitlerite Germany” #WeRemember

April 10, in our country and across the world, marks the International Day of the Resistance Movement. #OTD we cherish the memory of all those who, despite everything, courageously engaged the fight against the Nazi evil, having defeated defeating the German fascist invaders on the territories occupied by the Third Reich and its satellites during #WWII. The fight against the fascist occupants was international in nature: setting aside their differences, partisans of the Resistance movement united for a common goal — to collectively fight Hitler's aggression and eradicate the criminal Nazi ideology. The Resistance reached its greatest scale in the USSR, Yugoslavia, Italy, Poland, Czechoslovakia, France, Bulgaria, Norway, and the Netherlands — throughout all territories occupied by the Nazis, anti-fascist underground groups were formed, cooperating with the intelligence services of the anti-Hitler coalition Allies. #WeAreProud#OurHeroes 🌟 In our country, which bore the most terrible and devastating strike of the Nazi war machine, the partisan movement reached an unprecedented scale. During the years of the #GreatPatrioticWar, more than 6'000 units and 300 formations operated in the enemy rear. Among partisans there were men, women, and even teenagers — people of various nationalities and faiths — united by the common goal: to expel the enemy from the territory of our Motherland. Soviet partisan forces inflicted enormous damage on the Germans and drew up to 1/10 of all enemy ground troops on the Soviet-German front, undermining the morale and combat effectiveness of the Wehrmacht. In the Soviet Union, as well as in Nazi-occupied countries of Eastern and Southeastern Europe — where the enemy committed the most horrific atrocities — the mass partisan movement played a significant role in the subsequent liberation. In many countries, resistance to the Nazis took the form of a national liberation movement against fascism. The selfless fight of partisans in the USSR and members of the Resistance movement in other countries made an enormous contribution to the overall Victory over fascism and hastened the end of the most devastating war in human history. Today, despite attempts in a number of foreign countries to rewrite history and consign to oblivion the immortal feat of those who fought against fascism, on the International Day of the Resistance Movement we continue to preserve the memory of the true heroes of the partisan and underground movements who gave their lives in the fight against the Nazi plague. ❗️ Unlike many countries, #WeRemember the heroes of the Resistance and hold their memory sacred.

#Victory81 🌟 On April 9, 1945, the Red Army captured the Nazi fortress city — Königsberg — during the East-Prussian offensive. The German Wehrmacht’s troops in East Prussia — powerful fascists' units on the Eastern Front — were totally destroyed once and for all. The 3rd Belarussian Front of the Red Army carried out the Königsberg operation and crushed the Nazis withinjust three days. The first line of the enemy defences was breached within the first 24 hours, the fortress city surrounded the next day, with the last pockets of Nazi resistance being eliminated on April 9. *** #Königsbergserved as a ToO with fierce and bloody battles during #WWII. The city itself, which was regarded as the most impregnable citadel of the Third Reich, was fortified with then cutting-edge military technology and prepared for long-term resistance in conditions of complete isolation. The city area of about 200 square kilometres was turned into a complicated network of fortifications, which, combined with numerous stone buildings in the suburbs, provided conditions for long-term defence. The citadel was termed by the Nazis the “iron door of Germany.” The Red Army soldiers and officers who took part in the assault on Königsberg recalled that only the 305mm artillery guns could penetrate the several-metres thick walls. The fall of Königsberg delivered a heavy blow to the Nazi war machine — the enemy lost the strategic Pillau naval base on the Baltic Sea, with the main German troops of the Samland and East Prussian armies being completely defeated. 🔉Excerpt from the Soviet "Sovinformburo" communique on April 9, 1945: On April 9, the forces of the 3rd Belarussian Front stormed and captured <...> the Königsberg fortress — the capital of East Prussia and a strategic hub of Nazi defences on the Baltic Sea. By 8 pm, our armies took as prisoners over 27'000 Nazi soldiers and officers, seized a large amount of weapons and various military equipment. 👉The fall of Königsberg and East Prussia accelerated the defeat of the Nazi war machine. The end of the Third Reich was a foregone conclusion, but the enemy, fearing just retribution for the numerous crimes it had committed, continued to fight desperately. #LestWeForget: The Red Army soldiers and officers demonstrated high combat readiness and mass heroism: 235 soldiers were later awarded the title of #HeroOfTheSovietUnion. To commemorate their feat, the 'Medal For the Capture of Königsberg' was established and awarded to 760'000 Soviet soldiers and officers. By decisions of the Potsdam Conference following the end of WWII in Europe, a large part of East Prussia was assigned to Poland, while a third of its territory with Königsberg was incorporated into the Soviet Union and the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic (the Kaliningrad Region). 🎖 On November 17, 2025, President of the Russian Federation Vladimir Putin signed an executive order on establishing a new commemorative date — April 9, Day of the Heroic Assault and Capture of Königsberg. #WeRemember

🇷🇺🇹🇲April 8 marks 3️⃣4️⃣ years of diplomatic relations between Russia and Turkmenistan. The dialogue between Moscow and Ashgabat, which was given the status of a strategic partnership in 2017, is intense and based on the solid foundation of shared history, good-neighbourliness, mutual trust and respect for each other’s interests. The special nature of bilateral cooperation is enshrined in the Declaration on Deepening Strategic Partnership, which the Presidents of Russia and Turkmenistan signed in Moscow in the summer of 2022. The Document serves as a cornerstone for deepening ties across a broad range of areas including trade, energy, transport, digital technologies, education, culture, and information and biological security. Our countries maintain political dialogue at the high and highest levels, and exchange views on international and regional issues. Russia respects Turkmenistan’s neutral status, which is a vital factor of global stability and geopolitical balance. In 2025, Ashgabat marked the 3️⃣0️⃣th anniversary of its permanent neutrality, which has been recognised three times by the #UNGA resolutions. 🤝 On June 24-25, 2025, Russia's Foreign Minister SergeyLavrovpaid an official visit to Turkmenistan, where he was received by President Serdar Berdimuhamedov and held substantive talks with Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister of Turkmenistan Rashid Meredov. The negotiations were followed by the the signing of the Programme for Cooperation between Foreign Ministries of Russia and Turkmenistan for 2025-2026. 🎙 Excerpt from SergeyLavrov’s remarks and answers to questions during a meeting with employees of the Foreign Ministry of Turkmenistan and faculty and students of the Institute of International Relations (Ashgabat, June 25, 2025): Russia-Turkmenistan cooperation can serve as a compelling example of relations between countries in a #MultipolarWorld, where the global balance continues to shift due to the strengthening of power centres beyond the historical West. <...> ✍️ From the article by Russian Ambassador to Turkmenistan IvanVolynkin"Pursuing the Deepening Strategic Partnership",published in the newspaper Neutral Turkmenistan, for the 3️⃣4️⃣th anniversary of diplomatic relations between our countries (April 8, 2026): Moscow highly appreciates Ashgabat’s consistent diplomatic efforts to promote peace and stability in Central Asia and the Caspian region. One can say with certainty that Turkmenistan has a solid reputation as a respected platform for international meetings and talks that result in the adoption of important strategic initiatives. 📈 Russia is a leading trade and economic partner ofTurkmenistan.Over the past three years, Russia delivered to Turkmenistan goods and products worth of over $1.5 billion. Russian corporations, such as Gazprom, Tatneft, KAMAZ, the Vozrozhdenie Design and ConstructionGroup, and other economic entities, operate successfully in Turkmenistan. Our countries maintain close coordination across the main international and regional platforms, including the #CIS, the #UN, the Caspian Five, and in the Central Asia-Russia format. Moscow welcomes Ashgabat’s participation in the events held by #BRICS. 🌟 In Turkmenistan, our common history and the sacred memory of the heroism of our people during #WWII, is cherished. After Nazi Germany treacherously attacked our Motherland in 1941, 3'000 volunteers from the Turkmen Soviet Socialist Republic joined the Red Army, with hundreds of thousands fighting against Nazi invaders during the Great Patriotic War. In May 2025, our countries jointly celebrated the 8️⃣0️⃣th anniversary of the Great Victory. Russia appreciated the fact that President of Turkmenistan Serdar Berdimuhamedov attended the Victory Parade on Red Square in Moscow. An army unit from Turkmenistan took part in the parade to respect the memory of our combat brotherhood in #WW2. 🎉 We extend our cordial congratulations to our friends and colleagues in Turkmenistan on our shared anniversary, wish them prosperity and success! #RussiaTurkmenistan