VITEBSK, 28 June (BelTA) - Belarus and Russia have made a decisive contribution to saving the world from Nazism, Russian President Vladimir Putin said in a video address to the participants of the 11th Forum of Regions of Belarus and Russia shown during the plenary session "The role of interregional cooperation in building an innovative economy of the Union State", BelTA has learned.
"Taking this opportunity, I would like to congratulate our Belarusian friends on the Independence Day and on the 80th anniversary of the liberation of the Minsk Hero City from the Nazi invaders, which are celebrated on 3 July. Russia and Belarus will never forget that during the Great Patriotic War our peoples joined ranks to defend our Motherland, made enormous sacrifices to liberate Europe and made a decisive contribution to saving the world from Nazism,” Vladimir Putin said. “This January, President Lukashenko and I unveiled a new memorial complex in Gatchina District of Leningrad Oblast. It commemorates the civilians of the Soviet Union who fell victim to the Nazi genocide. That monument is one of many joint projects dedicated to the Great Victory.”
“It is vitally important that we regularly hold events in our regions to enhance the patriotic education of our young people, who must know the truth about the immortal and unparalleled heroism of our fathers, grandfathers and great-grandfathers,” the Russian president noted. “A relevant example of these joint efforts directly involving our regions is the Memory Train project, which is being held for the third time now. Schoolchildren from Russia, Belarus, Azerbaijan, Armenia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan will travel through Russian and Belarusian cities to see the historical sites and the places where the decisive battles of the Great Patriotic War were fought,” Vladimir Putin added.
