Second World War
Commemorations at the end of the war – Pro-Russian rockers in Berlin
Numerous people visited the Soviet War Memorial in Treptower Park in Berlin. photo
© Christoph Soeder/dpa
To commemorate the victory over Nazi Germany, numerous people come to the Soviet memorials, many in military uniforms. The nationalist rocker group “Nachtwölfe” also appeared.
Hundreds of people gathered in Berlin at the Soviet memorials in Tiergarten and Treptower Park at the end of the World War II remembered 79 years ago. The Russian ambassador Sergei Yuryevich Nechayev also visited both places.
He welcomed Russian Orthodox clergy at the memorial event in Treptower Park. The police checked visitors at the park entrances for prohibited symbols and objects.
On May 8, 1945, Germany surrendered and World War II ended in Europe. In Russia, Remembrance Day is celebrated on May 9 as Victory Day over Nazi Germany. Typically, representatives of the Russian Embassy in Berlin also lay wreaths at memorial sites on May 9th.
Isolated incidents
A police spokeswoman said in the afternoon that there had been isolated incidents around the memorial in the zoo. Some people were taken away to record their personal details. Police officers and policewomen were insulted. Some participants showed signs of anti-constitutional organizations. What exactly this was supposed to be was not initially known. The police want to draw a conclusion on Friday. Most visitors, however, behaved peacefully. They laid wreaths and flowers, many wearing military uniforms.
The Soviet nationalist rocker group “Nachtwölfe” also stopped off in Berlin and visited the two memorials in Tiergarten and Treptower Park. There were no special incidents, said the police spokeswoman.
The group has been visiting various memorial sites on the occasion of Remembrance Day for years. The anti-Western “Night Wolves” are seen as supporters of Russian President Vladimir Putin and the pro-Russian separatists in eastern Ukraine. Members of the motorcycle club visited Potsdam on Wednesday. In previous years they had already traveled to Berlin via Slovakia, Austria, the Czech Republic, Saxony and Brandenburg.