A monument to Stalin was unveiled in Volgograd, the former Stalingrad, at the museum commemorating the famous WWII battle.
A bust was dedicated to Stalin, flanked by two others dedicated to Georghy Zhukov and Alexander Vasilevsky, generals of the Soviet troops during the war against the Nazis.
Novaya Gazeta Europe reports it on its Twitter profile.
Monuments to Stalin, who embodies the
Soviet victory over the Nazis but also a terror regime that claimed millions of lives, are rare in Russia
.
Local officials and representatives of the city of Volgograd unveiled this bust of Stalin alongside those of two military leaders famous for their roles in the Battle of Stalingrad, Georgi Zhukov and Alexander Vasilievsky, according to images released by RIA Novosti.
Under a gray sky and the eyes of dozens of onlookers, the soldiers placed flowers at the foot of the three bronze busts.
According to the artist Sergei Shcherbakov, responsible for the realization and interviewed by the local media V1.ru, "everything was fast, we had to execute the order in a short time".
On Wednesday, ceremonies honoring the Soviet victory in Stalingrad began with the laying of wreaths at the foot of the Eternal Flame at the mass grave of the city's defenders.
Today and tomorrow were declared non-working in Volgograd by the authorities.
The commemorations come as the Kremlin has repeatedly presented its offensive against Ukraine as a "denazification" operation
, in keeping with its WWII legacy.
For Russians, Stalingrad is synonymous with victory over Nazism and this battle occupies a central place in the patriotism promoted by the Kremlin.
Vladimir Putin has repeatedly labeled the Ukrainian authorities as "neo-Nazis" who, in his view, are determined to exterminate the Russian-speaking population of eastern Ukraine.
