The Investigative Committee of Russia opened a criminal case over the desecration of a monument to the Red Army in the Czech Republic. This was announced on Thursday, April 29, according to the press service of the department.
According to the investigation, on April 21, unknown persons painted inscriptions on the pedestal of the monument to Soviet soldiers-liberators, located on the Moravian Square in the city of Brno, Czech Republic.
The criminal case was initiated on the grounds of a crime under Art. 354.1 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation (“Public desecration of the symbols of Russia’s military glory”), specifies “Gazeta.ru”.
The UK stressed that all comprehensive measures are being taken to establish those involved in the crime.
“This monument was erected in the city of Brno in 1955 in honor of the liberation of the city from the Nazis. Local residents have always treated the monument with respect. And in this regard, such a demonstration of disregard for the common memory and history of the struggle of the Soviet people against fascism looks especially illogical, ”the department noted.
Relations between Russia and the Czech Republic have become strained after the country’s Prime Minister Andrei Babis announced on April 17 that the security services were suspected of Russia’s involvement in an explosion at an ammunition depot in Vrbetica in 2014. On the same day, the Czech Republic decided to expel 18 Russian diplomats. The European Union supported the accusations of the Czech Republic, calling it reasonable suspicions of the alleged involvement of the Russian side in the explosion of ammunition.
Moscow, in response, declared 20 employees of the Czech embassy in the Russian Federation persona non grata. Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said that the expulsion of diplomats from Russia is an adequate response to aggressive actions on the part of Prague. In addition, the accusations in Moscow were categorically rejected, and the fact that Prague does not publish the report on the explosion, Zakharova called evidence of a lie.
As explained later in the department, as a result of the mutual expulsions of diplomats, by May 31, seven diplomats, 25 technical staff and 19 people received on the spot will remain in the embassies of the Czech Republic and Russia.
In October 2019, a monument to the Red Army in the city of Brno was doused with red paint. This happened a day after vandals desecrated a monument to the Red Army in Ostrava in the north-east of the country.