The Controversy over History
Relations between the East European members of the EU and Russia are burdened by their history, of which they take exceedingly different views. The dispute about the Soviet bronze statue in Estonia illustrates that Europe has become a more complicated place.
euro|topics-dossiers on the monument dispute
Main focus of Thursday, 10. May 2007
In Russia, May 9, the "Day of Victory" over National Socialism is traditionally marked with a massive military parade. Vladimir Putin has used the commemorative ... » more
In Russia, May 9, the "Day of Victory" over National Socialism is traditionally marked with a massive military parade. Vladimir Putin has used the commemorative ceremony to at once commemorate Russian history, and to demonstrate national power in view of current conflicts. In the run-up to the EU-Russia summit meeting in Samara, European newspapers criticise Russia's politicisation of history.
More from the press review on the subject » International Relations, » History, » Russia, » Eastern Europe
All available articles from » Ferran Adrià, » Lothar Schmidt
Main focus of Wednesday, 2. May 2007
In Estonia, the controversial bronze statue has been removed from central Tallinn to a military cemetery on the city outskirts. The removal of the monument, ... » more
In Estonia, the controversial bronze statue has been removed from central Tallinn to a military cemetery on the city outskirts. The removal of the monument, which for many Estonians was a symbol of Soviet occupation, led to heavy rioting. This has led Russians and Poles also to reflect on the removal of war monuments.
More from the press review on the subject » International Relations, » History, » Poland, » Estonia, » Russia
Main focus of Wednesday, 11. April 2007
In certain new EU Member States, relations with Moscow are very difficult because of historical conflicts inherited from the 20th century. The implications of this ... » more
In certain new EU Member States, relations with Moscow are very difficult because of historical conflicts inherited from the 20th century. The implications of this can be very big, as is apparent in the case of Estonia facing a Russian boycott of its exports.
More from the press review on the subject » International Relations, » History, » Russia, » Central Europe, » Eastern Europe
All available articles from » Jean-Louis Schlegel
Voices
Süddeutsche Zeitung - Germany | Friday, 11. May 2007
Philosopher Boris Groys tells Sonja Zekri what the dispute about the Soviet memorials in Eastern European countries is all about: » more
Philosopher Boris Groys tells Sonja Zekri what the dispute about the Soviet memorials in Eastern European countries is all about: "The whole conflict is related to a growing nationalism in all the Eastern European countries. In Estonia and Poland, that is why the communist past is dragged in. It is seen as an occupation by Russia. Everything is put in terms of an ethnic conflict between Estonians and Russians. I don't agree with this view of history, but that's how it is. And the further this ethnicisation of communism goes, most of it via self-exculpation, the more tensions we can expect."
» full article (external link, German)
More from the press review on the subject » History, » Russia, » Eastern Europe
All available articles from » Boris Groys
Dziennik Gazeta Prawna - Poland | Wednesday, 9. May 2007
The Polish government has postponed a proposed law for the removal of Soviet war memorials in Poland, in order to avoid exacerbating current tensions with ... » more
The Polish government has postponed a proposed law for the removal of Soviet war memorials in Poland, in order to avoid exacerbating current tensions with Russia. Historian Pawel Machcewicz of the Nicolaus Copernicus University in Torun finds this good, and emphasises that the Estonians were under more pressure from the Soviet Union than were the Poles. "The Poles are in an incomparably better situation. We don't have to shake off a colonial yoke, or an inheritance of decades of Russification. We don't have millions of Russians in our country whose identification with the Polish state is debatable. There also is no current mood in our society that would justify such spectacular moves aimed at the few remaining memorials to Russian soldiers… So we don't have to start our own memorial war against Russia. Especially because it would not only be a fight with the government of the Russian federation, but also with millions of Russians whose memory of those who fell in the war against Germany remains holy, the most important element of their patriotic tradition."
» full article (external link, Polish)
More from the press review on the subject » Domestic Policy, » History, » Poland, » Estonia
All available articles from » Pawel Machcewicz
Le Figaro - France | Friday, 27. April 2007
The French philosopher André Glucksmann is aggravated by what he considers a lack of reaction from European capitals to the repression of demonstrations against Vladimir Putin organised on April 14th, 2007. "Paris, Rome, London and Berlin are looking away and doing sums: » more
The French philosopher André Glucksmann is aggravated by what he considers a lack of reaction from European capitals to the repression of demonstrations against Vladimir Putin organised on April 14th, 2007. "Paris, Rome, London and Berlin are looking away and doing sums: Putin, his petrol, his gas, his weapons of mass destruction and those he sells all over the planet bear more weight than a few thousand demonstrators beat-up, dispelled and arrested by ten-fold repressive forces. ... It is time for the EU to proclaim that the passion for freedom has been fundamental part of the European spirit ever since Greek antiquity. This passion presided over its creation. It is the driving idea that led the anti-totalitarian revolts of Berlin (1953), the Polish uprising (1956), the Budapest insurrection (1956) and what followed in Prague and Warsaw, right up to the fall of the Berlin wall."
» full article (external link, French)
More from the press review on the subject » International Relations, » Russia, » Europe, » Eastern Europe
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Rzeczpospolita - Poland | Saturday, 18. November 2006
The Russian journalist and civil rights activist Vladimir Bukovski, who lives in Britain, approves of Poland's veto against an EU partnership agreement with Russia and explains Russia's attitude towards Poland. "If the Russian government doesn't like a Polish policy, it won't hesitate to make a sideswipe at Poland... In my opinion, Russia's position regarding Poland is influenced by two important factors: » more
The Russian journalist and civil rights activist Vladimir Bukovski, who lives in Britain, approves of Poland's veto against an EU partnership agreement with Russia and explains Russia's attitude towards Poland. "If the Russian government doesn't like a Polish policy, it won't hesitate to make a sideswipe at Poland... In my opinion, Russia's position regarding Poland is influenced by two important factors: Poland's efforts to help Belarus and Ukraine to achieve total independence from Russia and Poland's alliance with the US within the framework of the NATO. Of course, certain deeply rooted psychological motives also play a role. It's difficult to treat someone who was a servant until recently as a partner on an equal footing. Although 15 years have passed since the Red Army's withdrawal from Poland, no one in the Russian government is prepared to treat Poland in the same way they treat Paris. No one in Moscow wants to discuss things with Poland. The Kremlin still thinks Warsaw should simply accept Russian decisions without discussion."
» full article (external link, Polish)
More from the press review on the subject » International Relations, » EU Policy, » Poland, » Russia, » Europe
All available articles from » Wladimir Bukowski
Chronology of the conflict about the bronze statue in Estonia
La Voix du Luxembourg - Luxembourg | Friday, 4. May 2007
The recent removal of the 'Bronze Soldier' statue from the centre of Tallinn has provoked numerous demonstrations and caused fraught diplomatic tension between Estonia and ... » more
The recent removal of the 'Bronze Soldier' statue from the centre of Tallinn has provoked numerous demonstrations and caused fraught diplomatic tension between Estonia and Russia. For some this monument signifies the end of Nazi oppression and for others the beginning of the Soviet occupation. Laurent Moyse points out that "it is not surprising that the ghosts of the past are creeping back little by little in the central and eastern parts of the European continent. More to the west, we have at times taken a lot longer to look back on painful episodes of History. ... National reconciliation has always been a painful ordeal in countries that have experienced trauma. Europe has indeed been living at peace with itself for 60 years, but in many cases, it maintains the hypersensitive memory of someone skinned alive."
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More from the press review on the subject » Domestic Policy, » History, » Estonia, » Europe, » Eastern Europe
All available articles from » Laurent Moyse
Delfi - Estonia | Thursday, 3. May 2007
The tone has sharpened in the conflict between Russia and Estonia about the location of a war monument. In addition to incidents on the border ... » more
The tone has sharpened in the conflict between Russia and Estonia about the location of a war monument. In addition to incidents on the border between the two countries there was rioting in the editorial department of the Russian weekly 'Argumenty i Fakty' when members of a Kremlin-backed youth organisation stormed the building, where the Estonian ambassador was due to hold a press conference. The Estonian news portal fears the worst is yet to come. "When Russia physically attacks diplomats and the Estonian government's server and destroys the websites of newspapers, you could almost say war has already broken out. The Russian authorities are not only violating the Vienna Convention on diplomatic relations but also all the norms of international conduct, not to mention those of good manners. Russia's most powerful elite is fanning the anti-Estonian hysteria and using the rowdy youths as cannon fodder. We can only hope that the states that have pledged their support will keep their promise. Russia must be reminded that Estonia is not only an EU member but also a member of NATO."
» full article (external link, Estonian)
More from the press review on the subject » International Relations, » Security Policy / Crises / War, » Estonia, » Russia
Klaipeda - Lithuania | Thursday, 3. May 2007
Lithuanians like to tease the Estonians for their slow nature. Vigantas Danilavicius applies this to their conduct in the bronze statue dispute. "The Soviet monuments should have been removed straight after the putsch in the Soviet Union, when the Russians themselves were pulling their Dzerzhinsky statues from their pedestals, but not now, when Russia is erecting monuments to Lenin. ... The reaction of Russia to Estonia's move is nonetheless completely paranoid. The Estonians didn't raze the statue, as was often enough the case after the putsch; they just removed it to the place where it belongs: » more
Lithuanians like to tease the Estonians for their slow nature. Vigantas Danilavicius applies this to their conduct in the bronze statue dispute. "The Soviet monuments should have been removed straight after the putsch in the Soviet Union, when the Russians themselves were pulling their Dzerzhinsky statues from their pedestals, but not now, when Russia is erecting monuments to Lenin. ... The reaction of Russia to Estonia's move is nonetheless completely paranoid. The Estonians didn't raze the statue, as was often enough the case after the putsch; they just removed it to the place where it belongs: a cemetery. Perhaps in other cultures people prefer to mourn in public and on highly frequented squares, but this is certainly not the case in the Baltic states."
» full article (external link, Lithunian)
More from the press review on the subject » Religion, » History, » Weltanschauung, » Estonia
All available articles from » Vigantas Danilavicius
Lietuvos Rytas - Lithuania | Monday, 30. April 2007
Rimvydas Valatka calls on Lithuanians to declare their solidarity with Estonia in the latter's dispute with Russia over the bronze statue. "The Estonians are the ... » more
Rimvydas Valatka calls on Lithuanians to declare their solidarity with Estonia in the latter's dispute with Russia over the bronze statue. "The Estonians are the victims of Moscow and its followers, including former German Chancellor Gerhard Schröder, who was bought by Gazprom for a few pieces of silver. We sometimes make fun of the Estonians, but often enough we envy them because Estonia is always one step ahead of us. ... Even after the riots that Moscow's fifth column triggered, we should still envy the Estonians. They have shown that they have an efficient state. Their prime minister has proved he is able to govern, their police force was well-prepared and dealt with the Moscow-backed vandals in a professional manner. Can we imagine this being the case in Lithuania?"
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More from the press review on the subject » International Relations, » Domestic Policy, » Lithuania, » Estonia
All available articles from » Rimvydas Valatka
Népszabadság - Hungary | Saturday, 28. April 2007
After heavy riots broke out in the dispute surrounding a Soviet monument in Tallinn, which was dismantled late last week, the Estonian government has announced that the statue will be set up in a soldiers' cemetery. Gábor Miklós comments: » more
After heavy riots broke out in the dispute surrounding a Soviet monument in Tallinn, which was dismantled late last week, the Estonian government has announced that the statue will be set up in a soldiers' cemetery. Gábor Miklós comments: "There are controversial monuments like this all over Central Europe. Strangely enough, Germany is the only country where no one takes exception to them. In all other countries the prevailing opinion is that Soviet monuments are unacceptable. The riots in Tallinn and the criticism from Moscow show how politicians are not only trying to redefine views of history but also to manipulate people's emotions. ... On one hand you have a huge, offensive country and on the other a small republic that receives support from the West. But the real victims of the dispute are the Russians living in Estonia - a minority in a country that wants to act out its national renaissance."
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All available articles from » Gábor Miklós
Postimees - Estonia | Friday, 27. April 2007
The controversial Soviet memorial which stands in Estonia's capital, Tallinn, the so-called bronze statue, was removed on the night of April 26th to a cemetery on the city outskirts. Shortly before its removal there was heavy rioting around the statue, with one person left dead and 40 injured. Russia had previously protested against the removal of the statue. The Estonian newspaper praises the security force's actions: » more
The controversial Soviet memorial which stands in Estonia's capital, Tallinn, the so-called bronze statue, was removed on the night of April 26th to a cemetery on the city outskirts. Shortly before its removal there was heavy rioting around the statue, with one person left dead and 40 injured. Russia had previously protested against the removal of the statue. The Estonian newspaper praises the security force's actions: "The operation was well-planned, but unfortunately despite the preparations a riot broke out. The demonstrators protested so violently that the police were forced to intervene. Although it's unclear whether the situation would have escalated, police intervention was necessary to maintain public order and safety. It's a pity that in the 21st century a statue can still cause bloodshed and martyrdom."
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More from the press review on the subject » Security Policy / Crises / War, » Domestic Policy, » History, » Estonia
SL Õhtuleht - Estonia | Tuesday, 3. April 2007
For months now, a Soviet monument in the centre of Tallinn has been causing trouble. The Estonian government wants to have the bronze statue removed, ... » more
For months now, a Soviet monument in the centre of Tallinn has been causing trouble. The Estonian government wants to have the bronze statue removed, but Estonia's Russian minority and the Russian government are appalled by these plans. Hillar Kohv proposes a lasting solution. "On May 9th [the anniversary of the end of the Second World War] the Russians will once again lay flowers at the foot of the bronze statue while Estonian nationalists would love to shoot it to the moon. Although the affair is allowing protagonists on both sides to get their faces on television, most Estonians are weary of the whole thing. If the bronze statue is such an important symbol and the great pride of the Russians, they should just take it to Russia. Then the Russians could bring their flowers there and this would solve the problem for Estonia."
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All available articles from » Hillar Kohv
Diena - Latvia | Thursday, 5. April 2007
Russian Deputy Prime Minister Sergei Ivanov has called for a boycott against Estonian goods. One reason for the Russians' harsher tone is the row over the bronze statue, a Soviet monument in central Tallinn which Estonia wants to have removed. Aivars Ozolins says this is scandalous. "Before the Duma elections in December 2007 and the presidential elections in March 2008, the Kremlin and the country's political elite need both internal and external enemies, and Estonia is an ideal candidate for the external enemy. The 'internal enemies' are the foreigners: » more
Russian Deputy Prime Minister Sergei Ivanov has called for a boycott against Estonian goods. One reason for the Russians' harsher tone is the row over the bronze statue, a Soviet monument in central Tallinn which Estonia wants to have removed. Aivars Ozolins says this is scandalous. "Before the Duma elections in December 2007 and the presidential elections in March 2008, the Kremlin and the country's political elite need both internal and external enemies, and Estonia is an ideal candidate for the external enemy. The 'internal enemies' are the foreigners: since April 1 they are no longer allowed to trade in Russian markets, and this is fomenting racism." This whole process doesn't bode well for Latvia either, Aivars writes. "The thaw in the relations we have experienced since we signed the border treaty with Russia will probably prove to be short-lived."
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All available articles from » Aivars Ozolins
Postimees - Estonia | Thursday, 11. January 2007
Estonia has passed a new law to guarantee peace and protection for war cemeteries. But the real issue, say both supporters and critics, is the creation of a legal means to remove the controversial "bronze statue," a Soviet-era memorial that has gained cult-status among those nostalgic for the old regime. "It is no surprise that the new law immediately drew a negative reaction from Russia. But the law hardly means that the memorial would disappear. It only provides a legal justification. Even if the statue should be removed and the dead laid to rest elsewhere, this would occur in a legal manner, not with force and provocation. One thing is clear: » more
Estonia has passed a new law to guarantee peace and protection for war cemeteries. But the real issue, say both supporters and critics, is the creation of a legal means to remove the controversial "bronze statue," a Soviet-era memorial that has gained cult-status among those nostalgic for the old regime. "It is no surprise that the new law immediately drew a negative reaction from Russia. But the law hardly means that the memorial would disappear. It only provides a legal justification. Even if the statue should be removed and the dead laid to rest elsewhere, this would occur in a legal manner, not with force and provocation. One thing is clear: Nothing more will happen before the elections, but we will be exposed to a propaganda attack from Moscow in the coming weeks."
» full article (external link, Estonian)
More from the press review on the subject » Domestic Policy, » Cultural Policy, » Estonia
Postimees - Estonia | Tuesday, 27. June 2006
For months now, a dispute about the demolition of a bronze statue from the Soviet era has been raging in Tallinn. Krista Kodres takes up ... » more
For months now, a dispute about the demolition of a bronze statue from the Soviet era has been raging in Tallinn. Krista Kodres takes up the cudgel for the communist regime's cultural legacy. "Just imagine if people had pulled down the palaces of the hated Bourbons after the French Revolution, or if the Winter Palace and the Kremlin had been destroyed in the Russian Revolution. Or what if Estonia had destroyed its huge estates, the symbol of 700 years of slavery… The Soviet Union had its own culture too. Naturally, it wasn't always free of ideological influence, but writers wrote, artists painted, composers composed and architects built. True, not all of it can be called high culture, but everything that was created can still be categorised as culture."
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More from the press review on the subject » Cultural Policy, » History, » Estonia
All available articles from » Krista Kodres
Postimees - Estonia | Friday, 26. May 2006
In the centre of Tallinn stands a bronze statue of a Soviet soldier. Prime Minister Andrus Ansip says this monument to the occupation of the ... » more
In the centre of Tallinn stands a bronze statue of a Soviet soldier. Prime Minister Andrus Ansip says this monument to the occupation of the country must go – but his plans have met with opposition, in particular from the Russian section of the population. Kalle Muuli advises the two sides to remain calm. "For 15 years now, the Russians in our now independent Estonia have laid their flowers before the bronze soldier every May 9, and although this is not a pleasant sight for most Estonians, it's not so unbearable that they can't put up with it for a couple of days each year for the sake of peaceful coexistence. Moreover, Estonians, too, have come to the statue to mourn, so why all the fuss?... For sure, the government should remove the statue from the Tonismägi, but this shouldn't be done under these circumstances, because then it would be perceived as provocation."
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Estonian-Russian relations
Heti Világgazdaság - Hungary | Thursday, 29. March 2007
Following a decision reached by the Estonian parliament in mid-February, the statue of a Soviet soldier is to be removed from Tallinn's city centre. A new bill foresees a general ban against the public exhibition of monuments that glorify the country's occupation by Soviet forces. András Németh explains the background: » more
Following a decision reached by the Estonian parliament in mid-February, the statue of a Soviet soldier is to be removed from Tallinn's city centre. A new bill foresees a general ban against the public exhibition of monuments that glorify the country's occupation by Soviet forces. András Németh explains the background: "The 350,000 members of the Russian minority in Estonia continue to be a problem for the country. Only a third of them have become Estonian citizens. The rest are either stateless or remain Russian citizens... Estonians accuse this minority of a lack of loyalty to Estonia and are demanding they learn Estonian. The Russians, for their part, condemn Estonia's 'official falsification of history'. At the 'Museum of the Occupying Forces' there is a caption that explains the Russians' displeasure: 'In terms of sheer brutality and the number of people killed, the German occupation was less ruthless than the Soviet occupation of Estonia'. In the next room there's a video on show in which former Estonian SS soldiers justify their collaboration with Nazi Germany by saying that as loyal sons of their country it was their way of taking revenge for the atrocities committed by Russia."
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More from the press review on the subject » International Relations, » Minorities, » History, » Estonia, » Russia
All available articles from » András Németh
Postimees - Estonia | Wednesday, 28. February 2007
Amnesty International has written a letter to Estonian Prime Minister Andrus Ansip, complaining that the Estonian language tests the country's Russian minority has to undergo ... » more
Amnesty International has written a letter to Estonian Prime Minister Andrus Ansip, complaining that the Estonian language tests the country's Russian minority has to undergo are too rigorous. According to Erkki Bahovski, Amnesty's arguments are weak. "The example of the taxi driver who can't speak a word of Estonian is very strange, to say the least. Am I to be forced to speak Russian when I get into a taxi? And if there was a Muslim community in Estonia would Amnesty demand that Estonian women wear veils? Certainly, it's not as if everything's wonderful in Estonia and the country has done everything possible to accommodate its Russian citizens. Language courses are still very expensive and there's still a lot of red tape before people are granted Estonian citizenship. However, it wouldn't be a bad thing to remind Moscow that Amnesty is also drawing attention to the situation in Chechnya. That's where the problems are, not in Estonia."
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More from the press review on the subject » Minorities, » Estonia, » Russia
All available articles from » Erkki Bahovski
Delfi - Estonia | Monday, 18. December 2006
Estonia has banned all symbols from the times of the country's occupation, including Soviet symbols like the hammer and sickle. The ban has triggered protests in Russia. Hanno Pevkur notes that Estonia is not the first country to take such action, pointing out that the swastika, SS and other Nazi symbols are banned in Germany. "The list of banned symbols could go on forever. It only proves that anyone who wants to spread hate will always be able to find another symbol, but now he can be punished for it. It's obvious why the symbols of occupation were singled out in Estonia: » more
Estonia has banned all symbols from the times of the country's occupation, including Soviet symbols like the hammer and sickle. The ban has triggered protests in Russia. Hanno Pevkur notes that Estonia is not the first country to take such action, pointing out that the swastika, SS and other Nazi symbols are banned in Germany. "The list of banned symbols could go on forever. It only proves that anyone who wants to spread hate will always be able to find another symbol, but now he can be punished for it. It's obvious why the symbols of occupation were singled out in Estonia: this is the best way to use historic reasons to incite hatred in the country – at least when it is expressed in public. Anyone can wear a T-shirt with the words CCCP written on it on the street, but if they start to praise the occupation in public, they risk punishment."
» full article (external link, Estonian)
More from the press review on the subject » Estonia
Eesti Päevaleht - Estonia | Thursday, 14. December 2006
Estonia wants to ban all symbols from the times of the country's occupation, including Nazi emblems and Soviet symbols like the hammer and sickle. The ... » more
Estonia wants to ban all symbols from the times of the country's occupation, including Nazi emblems and Soviet symbols like the hammer and sickle. The Kremlin-oriented youth organisation "Young Russia" has reacted to the plans by burning Estonian flags. Eerik-Niiles Kross says the situation reminds him of the Muslim world's reaction to the Muhammad cartoons. "Apparently, the hammer and sickle are as sacred in Russia as Muhammad is in Morocco. ... But the problem is not the burning of flags – Estonia is now just one more country whose national symbols are deemed worthy of burning. The problem is that the perpetrators are using piety as a pretext."
» full article (external link, Estonian)
More from the press review on the subject » Estonia, » Russia
Postimees - Estonia | Friday, 1. December 2006
Estonia has passed a bill criminalising the use of symbols from the "occupying regime". Included are symbols of the National Socialist and Soviet regimes. The ... » more
Estonia has passed a bill criminalising the use of symbols from the "occupying regime". Included are symbols of the National Socialist and Soviet regimes. The Estonian daily paper casts a sceptical eye. "Like most bans, this decision reveals a societal weakness. No problem is resolved through prohibitions and punishments. Yet the public is meant to think otherwise. ... The ban on symbols of occupation reveals our inability to deal with our history. But Estonia is far from the only country to apply criminal law to this problem. In some countries, it is even illegal to deny the Holocaust."
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More from the press review on the subject » History, » Estonia
Postimees - Estonia | Monday, 13. November 2006
Estonian President Toomas Hendrik Ilves has announced that he will not demand an official apology for Russia's occupation of Estonia or raise other controversial issues ... » more
Estonian President Toomas Hendrik Ilves has announced that he will not demand an official apology for Russia's occupation of Estonia or raise other controversial issues at his next meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin. The Estonian newspaper points out that this illustrates Ilves' pragmatic approach but points out that Russia has yet to make its contribution to good relations. "Ilves has obviously decided to show his good will and keep practical issues like the bridge at the Narva border crossing, energy supplies and cooperation in the Baltic Sea region at the top of the agenda. This is a commendable approach, but what about the facts? Before 1995 many thought it would be enough to renounce our territorial claims to Russian territory, but eleven years later we still have no border agreement with Russia."
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More from the press review on the subject » International Relations, » Estonia
The dispute between Russia and Eastern Europe over history
Main focus of Friday, 27. April 2007
Russian President Vladimir Putin's state-of-nation address, delivered on April 26th, has caused a stir in Europe. He threatened that Russia would unilaterally withdraw from the ... » more
Russian President Vladimir Putin's state-of-nation address, delivered on April 26th, has caused a stir in Europe. He threatened that Russia would unilaterally withdraw from the CFE Treaty on conventional forces in Europe, which was signed in 1990. Among other things, he gave the US's plans for a missile defence system in Eastern Europe as the reason for this move.
More from the press review on the subject » International Relations, » Security Policy / Crises / War, » Russia
All available articles from » Feridun Zaimoglu, » Anna Reimann
Postimees - Estonia | Tuesday, 24. April 2007
Russia and Poland have been caught up in a dispute about the assessment of the history of Auschwitz since the directorate of the museum on the site of the concentration camp refused to accept a set of statistics about victims put forward by Russia. According to those statistics, half of the murdered Jews were Soviet citizens. The museum points out that many of the Jews came from areas in Poland, Romania and the Baltic states that only became part of the Soviet Union in 1939, with the signing of the Hitler-Stalin Pact. Erkki Bahovski explains: » more
Russia and Poland have been caught up in a dispute about the assessment of the history of Auschwitz since the directorate of the museum on the site of the concentration camp refused to accept a set of statistics about victims put forward by Russia. According to those statistics, half of the murdered Jews were Soviet citizens. The museum points out that many of the Jews came from areas in Poland, Romania and the Baltic states that only became part of the Soviet Union in 1939, with the signing of the Hitler-Stalin Pact. Erkki Bahovski explains: "It's not the first time Poland and Russia have argued over historical issues. To this date Russia has still not recognised the massacre of Katyn, during which around 20,000 Polish officers were murdered. It prefers to regard it as a crime of the past. Another contentious issue is the history of the Warsaw Uprising in 1944, when the Red Army waited on the other side of the Vistula River and simply watched while the Germans slaughtered thousands. The current dispute about the texts at Auschwitz is relatively peaceful in comparison."
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All available articles from » Erkki Bahovski
Diena - Latvia | Monday, 23. April 2007
The EU justice ministers have agreed on the basic framework for a pan-European law against racism which will make inciting racial hatred and denying genocide, ... » more
The EU justice ministers have agreed on the basic framework for a pan-European law against racism which will make inciting racial hatred and denying genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity punishable by law. Askolds Rodins points out that the crimes committed by the Stalin regime are not included in the list. "The reason for this is that there has yet to be an international legal ruling on these crimes. But at least the European Commission has given the go-ahead for a hearing about what the Red Army really got up to during the Stalin era in the so-called 'liberated territories'. Over the past twenty years much has been said and written in Latvia about how 'the world doesn't understand us' and how 'poorly we have explained our history'. Now we can see that we're not alone in this respect, because this also applies to Estonia, Lithuania and Poland. We now have the opportunity to bring international justice to focus on one of the most bloody totalitarian regimes in history."
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All available articles from » Askolds Rodins
Népszabadság - Hungary | Wednesday, 18. April 2007
The museum at Auschwitz has postponed the inauguration of an exhibition on the role of the Red Army in liberating the concentration camp. The delay ... » more
The museum at Auschwitz has postponed the inauguration of an exhibition on the role of the Red Army in liberating the concentration camp. The delay is owing to the dispute about the nationality of Holocaust victims who were taken from the territories that were annexed to the USSR under the Hitler-Stalin pact. Endre Aczél says the debate is unworthy of the victims. "The Polish curators of the museum find it unacceptable that Polish or Lithuanian Jews are referred to as Soviet citizens in the exhibition. Indeed, several million Jews became citizens of the USSR overnight, whether they wanted it or not. The Poles regard the term 'Soviet citizen' as a legitimisation of the splitting up of Poland between the Soviet Union and Nazi Germany. However, from the victims' perspective it's facetious to fight about their citizenship. They weren't deported to Auschwitz because of their citizenship but because of their origins."
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More from the press review on the subject » International Relations, » Exhibitions / Museums, » History, » Poland, » Russia
All available articles from » Endre Aczél
Gazeta Wyborcza - Poland | Saturday, 27. January 2007
In a joint initiative, the Polish daily "Gazeta Wyborcza" and the Dutch paper "De Volkskrant" have begun a debate about Europe. Readers can make their comments on related articles published by the two media in the Internet. Jacek Pawlicki calls for Ukraine to be allowed to join the EU for historical reasons: » more
In a joint initiative, the Polish daily "Gazeta Wyborcza" and the Dutch paper "De Volkskrant" have begun a debate about Europe. Readers can make their comments on related articles published by the two media in the Internet. Jacek Pawlicki calls for Ukraine to be allowed to join the EU for historical reasons: " As far as Poland is concerned, Ukrainians can be sure. They are welcome. We Poles are in favour of EU enlargement to the East. Not only because we see it as an opportunity. The political advantages of being in the EU are obvious. Joining the EU gave us a political orientation that took us out of the shadow of Moscow. We would like to share this opportunity with others. Solidarity is the key. We see enlargement as a historic process of reconciliation. The West owes something to the East. Yalta is for us not only a tourist resort on Crimea peninsula. It is a symbol of political treason. More than 50 years ago West bought prosperity and security form Kremlin selling us to the Soviets. Now is pay back time."
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More from the press review on the subject » EU enlargement, » Ukraine, » Eastern Europe
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Dziennik Gazeta Prawna - Poland | Wednesday, 29. November 2006
A gleeful Poland has beaten Russia in the Volleyball World Championship game on November 28 in Japan, with a score of 3: » more
A gleeful Poland has beaten Russia in the Volleyball World Championship game on November 28 in Japan, with a score of 3:2. Victories against the Soviet Union were already something big in communist times, recalls journalist Maciej Rybinski, with a note of irony. "Polish volleyball players give us spiritual strength when they beat Russia. Sport competitions against Russians, whether members of the Soviet Union or actually Russian citizens, always had a transcendental quality. To parody Clausewitz, games pitting Poles against Russians were an extension of politics, using other means. During the days of the People's Republic, a victory against the Soviets was at the same time a triumph over the ideology. Today, in the days of freedom and of market economy, it means beating the Russian energy company Gazprom."
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More from the press review on the subject » Sport, » Poland, » Russia
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Lietuvos Rytas - Lithuania | Thursday, 21. September 2006
Jacekas Komaras takes the 67th anniversary of the Red Army's invasion of Eastern Poland as an opportunity to remind people that the interpretation of the ... » more
Jacekas Komaras takes the 67th anniversary of the Red Army's invasion of Eastern Poland as an opportunity to remind people that the interpretation of the events of September 17, 1939 is still controversial in several countries today. In the secret supplement to the Hitler-Stalin pact, Germany and the Soviet Union divided Eastern Europe up into spheres of influence. Following the end of the war, large parts of Poland fell under Soviet rule and now belong to Belarus. "The Belarusian dictator, Alexander Lukashenko, is fond of this date and has declared it a public holiday commemorating the liberation of the western parts of the country from Poland. Cities like Grodno and Minsk even have streets named after September 17. But for Poland this date was a stab in the back. And for Lithuania it meant the end of independence… Many Lithuanians are still haunted by the Soviet stereotype, but at least we can hope that our children will learn the truth about September 17, 1939. In Russia, however, it's very unlikely that schools will change what they teach their pupils about this over the next ten to twenty years."
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More from the press review on the subject » History, » Germany, » Eastern Europe
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Rzeczpospolita - Poland | Wednesday, 21. June 2006
Pawel Reszka writes about a survey conducted in Russia by Levada Center, an independent sociological institute. According to the survey, seven percent of Russians regard Poland as an enemy state, and Latvia, Georgia, Lithuania and the US are also seen as enemies. The countries most often cited as friendly are Belarus, Kazakhstan and China, in that order. Reszka quotes Boris Timoshenko of the Moscow "Foundation for the defence of Glasnost": » more
Pawel Reszka writes about a survey conducted in Russia by Levada Center, an independent sociological institute. According to the survey, seven percent of Russians regard Poland as an enemy state, and Latvia, Georgia, Lithuania and the US are also seen as enemies. The countries most often cited as friendly are Belarus, Kazakhstan and China, in that order. Reszka quotes Boris Timoshenko of the Moscow "Foundation for the defence of Glasnost": "The results of the survey are not surprising. They reflect the influence of government propaganda. People in Russia can't understand when the Baltic states and Poland compare the Soviet occupation with that of the Nazis. The Russians are still expecting the discussion about the past to end with a 'thanks for liberating us'. The three 'friends', on the other hand, are proof of the 'Lukashenkonisation' of Russia."
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More from the press review on the subject » International Relations, » History, » Russia
All available articles from » Pawel Reszka
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Further articles on the subject » EU enlargement, » History, » Baltic States, » Russia, » Eastern Europe
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