RIGA (Sputnik) — Such rallies are held in Riga every March 16. The rallies, which cause resentment of anti-Nazi organizations around the globe, are usually attended by hundreds of people.
"We are deeply concerned about certain European countries trying to turn a blind eye to the strengthening neo-Nazi trends, systematic vandalism acts against World War II memorials and burial places. Amid wailing about the threats for liberal European values we can see the so-called ‘silence of the lambs’ regarding the state support for regular neo-Nazi rallies in Latvia. It is a shame for the European Union and for NATO. In fact, it tolerates insults against the memory of the millions of victims, ignores the decisions of the Nurnberg tribunal and UN General Assembly resolutions on the inadmissibility of Nazi heroization," Lavrov said.
The Latvian Legion was established in 1943. On March 16, 1944, the legion fought the Soviet Army near the Russian town of Ostrov, with the date being commemorated annually. The total number of the legion’s members amounted to almost 150,000 people.
