Russian Embassy in Asmara

🇷🇺April 12 — International Day of Human Space Flight 🇷🇺 🚀On April 12, 1961, Yuri Gagarin became the first person to journey into outer space aboard Vostok-1. His mission lasted only 108 minutes, but it changed the course of history forever. 🔭The chief architect of the Soviet space program was the brilliant Soviet scientist Sergey Korolev. 👏After the first flight new achievements soon followed. In 1965, Alexei Leonov became the first person to conduct a spacewalk. Valentina Tereshkova became the first woman in space, proving that space is open to everyone. 🌠We should also remember the theorists without whom spaceflight would have been impossible. The Russian scientist Konstantin Tsiolkovsky was one of the pioneers of space flight and the founding father of modern rocketry and astronautics. 🌍The achievements of the Soviet space program are of immense importance for all humanity. 💫May the striving of man to reach the stars never fade! #InternationalDayofHumanSpaceFlight#USSR#Russia

🗓 On September 7, 1945, a military parade of the allied forces of the #USSR, US, UK and France took place in Berlin near the walls of the defeated Reichstag on Alexanderplatz Square, marking the end of #WWII. The location of the parade – at the Brandenburg Gate, at the very heart of the German capital – was not chosen by chance. It was right here where the Battle of Berlin ended and the remnants of the Berlin group of German troops surrendered to the Red Army. Scheduled for September 7, the parade was timed to coincide with the victory over militaristic Japan. Representatives of the allied powers responded positively to Moscow's proposal to hold a joint parade in Berlin. However, on the eve of the event, after the date and all the details had been agreed upon, the US, UK and France announced that instead of the commanders-in-chief – Eisenhower, Montgomery and Tassigny – they would send lower-ranking generals, who were already stationed in Germany, to the parade. By doing so, the allies tried to downplay the significance of the parde, which emphasized the decisive role of the Soviet Union in taking Berlin. At that time, no one doubted who bore the brunt of the storming of the capital of the Third Reich. 🇷🇺 The USSR carried out thorough preparations for the parade. The Soviet command attracted the most distinguished soldiers, sergeants, officers and generals who had shown unrivalled courage in taking Berlin and the main centers of the reich – the Reichstag and the Imperial Chancellery. 🎖On September 7 at 11 am, the Berlin allied parade commenced. It was received by the Commander of the Group of Soviet Occupation Forces in Germany Georgy Zhukov. The parade was opened by the combined regiment of the 248th Rifle Division of the Red Army, led by Hero of the Soviet Union, Lieutenant Colonel Georgy Lenev. The parade was closed by a column of the Soviet armor, with the latest heavy tanks IS-3 ("Joseph Stalin") marching. 💬 In his welcoming speech to the parade participants, Marshal Zhukov paid tribute to the exploits of the Soviet and Allied forces in the struggle for victory over Nazi Germany: "Fighting friends, comrades in arms, soldiers, officers and generals... <...> The Second World War ended with a decisive and powerful strike from the great allied powers. Our victory is a triumph of an unprecedented military partnership of democratic states. From now on, people <...> will be eternally grateful to the great nations of America, England, the Soviet Union, the French Republic and China, to their valiant soldiers who, in the difficult time of military trials, gave each other helping hands, united to win a victory over a common enemy, to win the long-awaited peace on Earth." #Victory79#WeRemember#WeWereAllies