kyiv City Hall on Tuesday demolished a historic monument of the Soviet era celebrating friendship between Ukraine and Russia, following Moscow’s invasion of the country launched two months ago.
AFP journalists saw the head of one of the two figures in this statue, representing a Russian worker and a Ukrainian worker, together holding in their hands a Soviet symbol with an inscription. Friendship between peopletrying to dismantle a crane in the very center of kyiv.
The eight metal meters of the so -called “friendship of two people” were shattered. And what is symbolic […] the head of the Russian worker felltold the Telegram the mayor of the Ukrainian capital, Vitali Klitschko.
Failing to succeed in tearing up the monument with a crane, workers then sawed off the legs of the statue to dismantle it from its base.
Not without difficulty, but the sculpture […] was dismantled tonightsaid Mr. Klitschko in the second message, believing it was a symbol already drive out the conqueror from Ukraine.
This massive bronze statue was erected during the Soviet era, in 1982, to commemorate reunification of Russia and Ukraine.
Mr. Klitschko justified his dissolution by Moscow’s desire to destroy the state and the Ukrainians in the invasion of the country launched on February 24.
Another monument of this set will be dismantled at a later date, while the third, an arch, will be renamed and illuminated in Ukrainian colors.
According to the mayor of kyiv, 60 other monuments, bas-reliefs and landmarks associated with the USSR and Russia will be demolished soon. More than 460 streets will also be renamed.
Ukraine has for years pursued a policy of decommunication in particular by dismantling Lenin’s statues and changing the names of some cities to restore their name before the Bolshevik revolution in 1917.
Source: Radio-Canada
