Russia uses liberation anniversary to criticise Norway
Russians and Norwegians are gathering at the liberation monument in Kirkenes to remember the war, according to Russian authorities. From Moscow comes an attack on Norwegian policy.
Russia’s Foreign Ministry accuses Norway of pursuing a “hostile course” in a statement marking the 82nd anniversary of the liberation of eastern Finnmark. Russian media reported the statement on Sunday, 25 October.
The ministry also stresses the importance of shared wartime memories. It says staff from the Russian consulate general, Russian citizens and Norwegians are taking part in a commemoration at the liberation monument in Kirkenes.
The monument honours the Soviet soldiers who liberated the town from German occupation on 25 October 1944. The anniversary connects today’s border community with the people who drove German forces out 82 years ago.
In the ministry’s account, that history also serves a purpose in the present political conflict. Moscow contrasts Norwegian participation at the monument with the policies pursued by Norway’s authorities. Its statement combines recognition of those preserving wartime memories with an accusation against the Norwegian government.
The description of a “hostile course” is the Russian authorities’ assessment. The Norwegian participants’ own views are absent from the account. Their presence nevertheless forms part of the story Moscow tells about relations between the two neighbours.
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