Russian Foreign Ministry accuses Czech politicians initiating “war” over symbols of victory over Nazism

Russia's Ministry of Foreign Affairs has issued a statement accusing some Czech politicians of being initiators of a “war” over symbols of the victory over Nazism. It refers to the ongoing dispute over a statue of Soviet marshal Ivan Konev in Prague.

Jiří Pospíšil, chairman of the Czech opposition party TOP 09, called the Russian statement “unacceptable and outrageous”. The Konev statue was vandalised during the 30th anniversary of the Soviet invasion of Czechoslovakia in August 1968. Prague 6 district mayor Ondřej Kolář (also TOP 09), has been pushing for the relocation of the statue either to the Russian Embassy in Prague or a museum.

Russia's Foreign Ministry said in their statement that doing so would derogate the significance of the history the Konev statue is commemorating.

The statue's fate is set to be discussed at a Prague 6 district representatives meeting on Thursday.