Russia’s ambassador to Poland was showered with red on Monday by people protesting the war in Ukraine as he went to lay flowers at a Soviet military cemetery in Warsaw to mark the 77th anniversary of his victory over Nazi Germany.
The war in Ukraine has cast a shadow over this year’s Victory Day, when Moscow honors the 27 million Soviet citizens who lost their lives in World War II. Poland, a staunch supporter of Ukraine in its resistance to the Russian invasion, has opposed any large-scale remembrance.
The Russian Ambassador to Poland, Ambassador Sergei Andreev, is covered in red paint in Warsaw, Poland, Monday, May 9, 2022. AP Photo / Maciek Luczniewski
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Videos posted on Twitter show protesters, some with Ukrainian flags, bypassing the Russian delegation and chanting “fascists” before Ambassador Sergei Andreev was showered with red.
Andreev told reporters that he and his team were not seriously injured in the incident, TASS reported.
“We will make an official protest,” he said. “When they advised us not to hold a bigger event, we welcomed them in half, we did not make the situation worse.
Earlier in the day, the words “Kill Putin” were found in blue and yellow, the colors of the Ukrainian flag, on a monument at the cemetery, private TVN24 reported. The caption was later removed.
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A protester interviewed by TVN24 said it was good that the ambassador was covered in red.
“We are with Mariupol with all our hearts,” she said, referring to the southeastern Ukrainian city devastated by the war.
Activists shout slogans while Russia’s ambassador to Poland, Ambassador Sergei Andreev, on the left, is covered in red paint in Warsaw, Poland, Monday, May 9, 2022. AP Photo / Maciek Luczniewski 0:44 Putin is responsible for “heinous war crimes” in Ukraine: Trudeau Putin is responsible for “heinous war crimes” in Ukraine: Trudeau
“Neo-Nazi thugs”
The Polish Foreign Ministry described the incident as “unfortunately”.
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“Diplomats enjoy special protection, regardless of the policies pursued by the governments they represent,” the statement said.
Russia’s foreign ministry said in a statement: “There has been a strong protest to the Polish authorities that they are in fact making fun of neo-Nazi thugs.”
He also urged Polish authorities to hold a new wreath-laying ceremony as soon as the incident halted the original plan.
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Poland, home of the Solidarity trade union, which played a key role in overthrowing communism in Central and Eastern Europe, has long had strained relations with Russia and is in favor of harsh sanctions against Moscow over its invasion of Ukraine.
More than three million Ukrainians have fled Poland since the Russian invasion began on February 24.
President Vladimir Putin called Russia’s actions in Ukraine a “special military operation” to disarm the country and protect it from the Nazis. Ukraine and the West say the allegation of fascism is a false pretext for an unprovoked aggressive war by Russia.
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