Russia erects statue to honor Vietnamese international volunteers

On August 12, at the Patriot Park in the suburbs of Moscow, near the Cathedral of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation, General Phan Van Giang, Politburo member, Deputy Secretary of the Central Military Commission, Minister of National Defense of Vietnam, led a high-ranking delegation of the Vietnamese Ministry of National Defense to attend the inauguration ceremony of the monument commemorating Vietnamese international volunteers who participated in the fight to protect the capital Moscow during the Great Patriotic War (1941-1945).

Also attending the event were Senior Lieutenant General Viktor Goremykin, Deputy Minister of Defense, Director of the Main Political-Military Directorate of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation; Senior Lieutenant General Alexander Fomin, Deputy Minister of Defense of the Russian Federation; Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Vietnam to the Russian Federation Dang Minh Khoi.

During the period 1926-1930, a number of patriotic Vietnamese youths were introduced by comrade Nguyen Ai Quoc (President Ho Chi Minh) to study in Moscow.

When Nazi Germany attacked the Soviet Union, the comrades volunteered to join the International Regiment of the Motorized Infantry Special Forces Brigade (OMSBON) of the Soviet People's Commissariat of Internal Affairs to participate in the battle to defend the capital Moscow.

In the winter of 1941-1942, Vietnamese international volunteers fought bravely to protect Moscow and together with the Soviet army and people, drove the German fascists out of the gates of Moscow.

Three comrades, Ly Nam Thanh, Ly Anh Tao, and Ly Thuc Chat, sacrificed their lives at the front. In 1986, the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the Soviet Union posthumously awarded noble Orders and Medals to these soldiers.

In 2020, the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation proposed that the Vietnamese side coordinate to review and consider the possibility of providing additional information about individuals and relatives of Vietnamese international volunteers who participated in the fight to protect Moscow during the Great Patriotic War, to add to the database in the “Memory Trail” Museum of the Main Cathedral of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation in Patriot Park.

At the same time, implementing the direction of the head of the Ministry of National Defense regarding Russia's request to provide comments on the draft of the monument to Vietnamese international volunteer soldiers, the General Department of Politics of the Vietnam People's Army directed the Propaganda Department to preside over the research and proposal; then report and propose that the head of the Ministry of National Defense agree with the draft of the monument prepared by the Russian side. At the same time, agencies, units, localities and families of soldiers reviewed and selected appropriate images and documents to provide to the Russian side through diplomatic channels.

The group of three statues created by sculptor Alexey Chebanenko, named “Allies - Vietnamese Soldiers,” depicts soldiers Ly Nam Thanh, Ly Anh Tao, and Ly Thuc Chat in Soviet Red Army uniforms, stationed at a defensive position to protect Moscow and fighting until their last breath.

Also on the morning of August 12, the monument “Allies - Yugoslav Partisans” by author Lyudmila Semikopenko and the monument “Allies - Normandy - Neman Regiment” by author Dmitry Klavsuts were also inaugurated at the complex.

Speaking at the ceremony, General Phan Van Giang expressed his emotion when he and the leaders of the Russian Federation Ministry of Defense and delegates inaugurated the monument; at the same time, he emphasized that the Ministry of National Defense and the Vietnam People's Army highly appreciated and sincerely thanked the Ministry of National Defense and the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation for building the monument.

General Phan Van Giang stated that the monument to Vietnamese international volunteers in the suburbs of Moscow, along with the Memorial to Soviet/Russian-Vietnamese soldiers who sacrificed their lives for regional peace and stability in Khanh Hoa province, are both a testament to historical tradition and a symbol of efforts to strengthen and deepen the comprehensive strategic partnership between the two countries.

For his part, Colonel General Viktor Goremykin emphasized that Vietnamese soldiers volunteered to participate in the battle to defend Moscow, one of the important battles in the Great Patriotic War, and believed that the monuments would contribute to preserving historical memories of the Great Patriotic War, as well as contributing to strengthening cooperation and tightening friendship between the two countries.

At the ceremony, General Phan Van Giang visited and encouraged Ms. Le Thi Phuong, daughter of one of the soldiers who participated in protecting Moscow, Ly Phu San (Le Phan Chan), who is currently living in Moscow.

General Phan Van Giang presented Mrs. Le Thi Phuong with the national flag with the wish that her family will always look towards their homeland and the country and hoped that she and her family will soon return to visit their homeland Vietnam.