Support The Moscow Times!

Poland Set to Demolish 500 Soviet Monuments

The Polish government plans to demolish about 500 Soviet monuments throughout the country, head of the Institute of National Remembrance Lukasz Kaminsky said in an interview with online portal Onet.pl, the RBC news website reported Thursday.

Kaminsky — whose institute is responsible for investigating crimes against the Polish nation — said that plans for the demolition of the monuments, would be sent to local authorities in the coming weeks.

These monuments should have been demolished in the early 1990s, he said, and called the preservation of the monuments “a fatal mistake.”

The demolished monuments will be removed and transferred to museums where they can become “a witness of hard times,” Kaminsky said, the RIA Novosti news agency reported.

He added that such measures would not apply to the graves of Soviet soldiers, for which Poland will continue to care.

Soviet war memorials have fallen into disrepair and been regularly vandalized in Poland, where the Soviet role in World War II is viewed with ambiguity or outright hostility. In Russia, the official narrative is that the Red Army liberated Poland from Nazi occupation.

Yelena Sutormina, chair of development of public diplomacy and the support of compatriots abroad chamber, has called on the UNESCO cultural and scientific agency to block the decision of the Polish government, RIA Novosti reported.

This is not the first time Poland has moved to dismantle Soviet monuments and faced a strong negative reaction from Russia.

Last year the Russian Foreign Ministry accused Poland of unleashing a “war on monuments” after they demolished a monument that had been erected to commemorate the camaraderie between Polish and Red Army soldiers, RBC reported.

Sign up for our free weekly newsletter

Our weekly newsletter contains a hand-picked selection of news, features, analysis and more from The Moscow Times. You will receive it in your mailbox every Friday. Never miss the latest news from Russia. Preview
Subscribers agree to the Privacy Policy

A Message from The Moscow Times:

Dear readers,

We are facing unprecedented challenges. Russia's Prosecutor General's Office has designated The Moscow Times as an "undesirable" organization, criminalizing our work and putting our staff at risk of prosecution. This follows our earlier unjust labeling as a "foreign agent."

These actions are direct attempts to silence independent journalism in Russia. The authorities claim our work "discredits the decisions of the Russian leadership." We see things differently: we strive to provide accurate, unbiased reporting on Russia.

We, the journalists of The Moscow Times, refuse to be silenced. But to continue our work, we need your help.

Your support, no matter how small, makes a world of difference. If you can, please support us monthly starting from just $2. It's quick to set up, and every contribution makes a significant impact.

By supporting The Moscow Times, you're defending open, independent journalism in the face of repression. Thank you for standing with us.

Once
Monthly
Annual
Continue
paiment methods
Not ready to support today?
Remind me later.

Read more