BREST, 5 February (BelTA) – The Victory Relay campaign kicked off at the Brest Hero Fortress Memorial on 5 February. The relay will travel the external borders of the CIS member states, BelTA has learned.
The relay is celebrating the 75th anniversary of the Great Victory and is held under the decision of the CIS heads of state following the proposal of the CIS Council of Border Guard Commanders. The Victory Relay campaign kicked off in Brest and Russia's Murmansk on one day and will follow two routes across ten countries. Taking part in the events will be border guards, war veterans, school students, and the general public. The relay will finish on Poklonnaya Gora in Moscow on 28 May. “Victory Day is a special date for all of us. This victory came with tremendous costs. Almost every family faced sufferings. We withstood however and are proud of it,” Chairman of the Coordination Service of the CIS Council of Border Guard Commanders Aleksandr Manilov.
It is not mere chance that Brest has been chosen for the start of the relay. Brest Oblast Governor Anatoly Lis said that the first to engage the invaders in June 1941 were soldiers of the 17th Red Banner Brest Frontier Detachment. Many of them died in the first days of the war. Those present laid wreaths at the memorial, honored the memory of the defenders who died during the war.
“75 years since the Victory has shown that it was not enough to defeat the enemy. In a peaceful life, it is important not to lose the fruits of this Victory, not to give up its greatest achievements. Lessons from World War II have not been learned, many are trying to rewrite its history. We must preserve the memory of the people who saved mankind from the Nazis. We, the heirs of the Victory, should treat it as the greatest value,” said Chairman of the State Border Committee of Belarus Anatoly Lappo.
The relay symbols handing ceremony will be the highlight of the event. Aleksandr Manilov handed then to the relay group. On Anatoly Lappo's order, the participants of the relay started their journey along the Belarusian border. The first stop will be at the 11th frontier post of the Brest border service command named after Hero of the Soviet Union A.M.Kizhevatov.
The Brest border guards will hand the relay to their colleagues of the Pinsk border guard detachment on 6 February. Then, the relay will go to other Belarusian oblasts. The campaign will feature meetings with war veterans and the youth, themed events. Reenactment events will be held near Lelchitsy, Yelsk and Mozyr. The relay will be handed to representatives of the Russian border service on 18 February.
Photos by Vadim Yakubyunok
