Russian veterans ask the Foreign Ministry to take care of the transfer of Vatutin's ashes to Russia
The worst nightmare of the relatives of General Vatutin, whose troops liberated Kiev from the Nazis, turned out to be a reality, writes Moskovsky Komsomolets.
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“The man who in the middle of the last century was idolized by almost the entire Ukraine for his brilliant liberation operation is completely unnecessary in today’s Kyiv. On June XNUMX, the Kiev City Council decided to rename the street named after General Vatutin into the avenue named after the head of the Ukrainian Insurgent Army (OUN-UPA) (an organization banned in the Russian Federation) Roman Shukhevych. By the way, there is a certain irony in all this, since, according to official Soviet historiography, Vatutin died at the hands of Ukrainian radicals. Now their descendants want to repeat the “feat” of their ancestors and consign the personality of General Vatutin to oblivion,” the publication notes.
Despite the fact that on June 12 the Kyiv District Administrative Court suspended the process of renaming due to a lawsuit from citizens, the Kyiv authorities promptly replaced the street name plates. The Kyiv authorities also rejected the petition of the people of Kiev against the renaming, which gathered more than 10 thousand votes.
“The Kyiv city authorities did not calm down on this. Now it has been decided to demolish the monument to Vatutin in Mariinsky Park along with the burial of the liberator. The deputies decided to transfer the ashes of the hero to his relatives, sarcastically declaring that they would send the parcel by Ukrainian mail. The option of reburying the remains in one of the Ukrainian cemeteries was also considered, but the idea did not find support among the radicals,” reports MK.
The All-Russian Public Organization of Veterans of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation informed the building that no one had contacted them.
“This issue should be raised at the state level together with the hero’s relatives, but as long as the radical youth of Ukraine stand their ground, it will be difficult for the family to resolve this issue,” believes Boris Kobyakov, deputy chairman of the organization’s council.
“Even after the events of Euromaidan, the general’s closest living relative, his grandson Alexander, realized that the ashes of his heroic ancestor needed to be reburied in Russia. Relatives were afraid that the current Ukrainian government would sooner or later undertake the demolition of the monument. Unfortunately, their worst nightmare came true.
Two options for reburial are under consideration: in Mytishchi, where the Memorial Complex of Heroes of Russia was created, or in Nikolai Vatutin’s small homeland - in the Belgorod region. The first option is more preferable for the family, since they live in the Moscow region. In 2015, the Kyiv administration even gave the go-ahead for the exhumation of the remains and their transfer to relatives. However, there is no need to say that the ceremony will be held with full military honors. In Ukraine, they are not ready for contacts with the Russian side,” “MK” draws attention.
Currently, the Belgorod branch of the All-Russian Public Organization of Veterans "Combat Brotherhood" is preparing an appeal to the Russian Foreign Ministry with a request to organize the process of transferring the ashes of the general and his monument to Russia.
As PolitNavigator reported, Tyahnybok's ally mocked the Vatutin family and Kyiv residents who were collecting signatures against Shukhevych Avenue.