Russia's Foreign Ministry Ready to Assist in Installation of Monument to Soviet Army in Zimbabwe

The Great Patriotic War is a term used in Russia and some other former republics of the Soviet Union to describe the conflict fought during the period from June 22, 1941, to May 9, 1945, along the many theaters of the Eastern Front in World War II, primarily between the Soviet Union and Nazi Germany.

The Russian Foreign Ministry is ready to provide necessary assistance in ensuring Russian participation in the installation of a monument in Zimbabwe dedicated to the victory of the USSR in the Great Patriotic War, said deputy director of the Department of Africa of the Russian Foreign Ministry, Andrey Stolyarov.

"From our side, we are always ready to provide the necessary assistance in ensuring Russian participation in this project. In particular, through our embassy, we have agreed on the dates of the trip of our experts to Zimbabwe and are ready to continue to provide the necessary assistance," he said during a meeting in the Federation Council.

Earlier, Maxim Dulyan, head of the Africa Department of the Russian Foreign Ministry, told Sputnik News that at the initiative of the Zimbabwean side, a monument dedicated to the victory of the USSR in the Great Patriotic War will be erected on the territory of the Museum of the Liberation of Africa currently under construction in Harare.

The monument will be developed jointly by Russian and African artists and sculptors, an interdepartmental working group is working on this project, Director of the Zimbabwe Institute of African Studies Kwame Muzawazi told the agency.

"Now (the monument) is under development, we have seven proposals inside the studio, they were shown to our art council. There is an understanding that there are many ideas, you will have to choose from them. During this week, we want to prepare the selection and tablets for showing the sketches themselves live," said Tatiana Samarskaya, honorary member of the Russian Academy of Arts, who works for Grekov Studio – a Russian Defense Ministry group of military artists.

According to her, the monument is planned to be made of bronze, stone, and mosaic. She noted that four points are being considered for the installation of the monument, the size of which will be at least 15-20 meters.

On the Russian side, the project is supervised by the Federation Council, the upper house of the Federal Assembly. The topic of creating a museum and opening a monument was raised during a visit by Chairwoman of the Federation Council Valentina Matvienko to Zimbabwe and her talks with the country's president in June last year.