"There is no sign of any change in the bellicose rhetoric towards Moscow"
During the Russian special operation in Ukraine, Austria provided financial assistance to Kiev for about 300 million euros through various channels, Russian Ambassador to Vienna Dmitry Lyubinsky told Izvestia. Despite the anti-Russian course of the country's authorities, most Austrians do not share the fears that the Russian Federation may attack them. In this sense, it is significant that ordinary residents continue to attend events organized by diplomats dedicated to the Great Patriotic War. So, several commemorative events will be held on April 13, the day of the 80th anniversary of the liberation of the Austrian capital from the Nazis, and on May 9, according to tradition, the march of the "Immortal Regiment" will take place. In an exclusive interview with Izvestia, Dmitry Lyubinsky talks about how the memory of Red Army soldiers is honored in Austria, about the country's loss of its neutrality and the contradictions of its foreign policy.
"No matter how hard the detractors try to distort history, they will not succeed"
— Tell us, how will the embassy celebrate the 80th anniversary of the end of the Vienna Offensive operation on May 9th? Are there any plans for joint activities with representatives of the Austrian authorities?
— On April 13, the day of the liberation of the Austrian capital by the Red Army, we will celebrate several events at once. In the morning, together with the embassies of the CIS countries, the leadership and staff of Russian diplomatic missions, students of the school at the embassy named after Hero of the Soviet Union General Dmitry Karbyshev, as well as with the active participation of compatriots, we will hold a solemn ceremony of laying wreaths and flowers at the monument to the Soviet soldier liberator on Schwarzenbergplatz and open a thematic exhibition of archival photographs there.
We have never organized such an open-air exhibition project lasting almost a month. I really hope that it will draw additional attention to the feat of the Red Army soldiers of all nationalities who gave their lives for the liberation of the Austrian capital.
In the afternoon, we are scheduled to present a book in Russian, English and German about how the Vienna strategic operation of the Red Army developed, and what trials our valiant soldiers had to overcome during the liberation of the Austrian capital from fascism. This is the central, ninth, chapter from the book "From Stalingrad to Vienna. The combat path of the 4th Guards Army", signed to the press on December 21, 1945. In fact, this is a war diary with unique photographs. I've been interested in military history for a long time, but I've seen some of the footage of the Vienna Operation that is present in this book for the first time, including photographs of the legendary Yevgeny Khaldei. We will definitely hand over copies of the publication to the Austrian authorities at the federal and regional levels, to higher educational institutions and libraries.
The Great Patriotic War of 1941-1945 Liberation of Austria from Nazi invaders during the Vienna offensive operation by Soviet troops
As for Victory Day, on May 9, along with the traditional commemorative ceremonies of laying wreaths and flowers at the Central Cemetery and at the monument to the Soviet soldier-liberator on Schwarzenbergplatz, the Immortal Regiment is scheduled to march through the center of Vienna, after which a solemn concert will be held there.
Meanwhile, the Austrian authorities at the federal and local levels continue to pursue their policy of total freezing of all contacts with us, which they took in February 2022. Even against the background of such landmark events for the Austrian statehood as the 80th anniversary of the liberation of Vienna, nothing will change. At the same time, I am pleased to note that ordinary Austrians attend our memorial events and invite us to their own. We try to be always present.
— How big will these dates be celebrated in Austria? Are they talking about the events of 1945 in the media and do they pay tribute to the feat of the Soviet soldier? Do the Austrian youth know today about the contribution of the Red Army to the liberation of Austria?
— Towering on Vienna's central Schwarzenbergplatz square on a 20-meter-high pedestal, the Soviet soldier liberator, whose 80th anniversary will be widely celebrated this August, is a vivid reminder to residents and guests of the Austrian capital of who brought them freedom in April 1945.
Memorial in honor of the Soviet soldiers who died during the liberation of Vienna during the Second World War, on Schwarzenbergplatz Square
During the anniversary year, of course, a lot of historical publications and radio and television reports are published in the Austrian media. Unfortunately, only a few of them give a balanced picture of those events. What do Austrian journalists and Austrian historians write about? For example, about how hard life was for the civilian population of Vienna under the bombing. The fact that these were not Soviet aerial bombings, but American ones, is, of course, kept silent about this. They say how hard it was in the first months after the war and even the years during the occupation by the Allied Powers. But they are silent about how much grain and how much food were supplied to Austria by the Soviet Union in conditions of complete devastation at home.
They also do not talk about the role the Austrians played in the overall complex of terrible crimes of the Wehrmacht or the SS on the territory of the Soviet Union. In other words, you will not find this theme of historical repentance and historical responsibility on the pages of the Austrian press. You won't find any words of gratitude either. This feeling is apparently alien to the current political elite regarding the Russian Federation as a successor to the Soviet Union.
Maybe this is why there are many internal problems that are peculiar to Austrian society. This also implies the political inferiority of the Austrian elites, who cannot be honest with themselves about what is happening and was happening between Austria and the Soviet Union. Our history has had some good pages, but also some very scary ones.
Nevertheless, it is encouraging that, judging by the letters and appeals that we receive, the Austrians, as they say, are not being propagandized in the mass media. No matter how hard the detractors try to distort history, silence or belittle the decisive role of the Red Army in liberating Europe from German Nazism, they will not succeed.
The dry statistics speak for themselves. The Vienna offensive cost the lives of more than 38,000 Red Army soldiers. If we take into account the prisoners of Mauthausen and other concentration camps, the number of dead natives of the Soviet Union rises to 80 thousand. No special studies have ever been conducted on the losses suffered by the Allies. Nevertheless, there are separate studies that allow us to roughly estimate the losses of the Allies in the battles on the territory of present-day Austria.
So, on the part of the United States, losses are estimated from 200 to a maximum of 500 people. The UK lost from 50 to 200 troops, France lost about 20-30 of its soldiers. Even if we take this figure to the maximum, the ratio will be 1 to 50, or even 1 to 100. This is the scale of what happened in those years, and the answer to those who begin to argue about who liberated Austria and at what price this victory was given.
— Last year, the Russian Embassy in Austria was denied participation on May 5 in a commemorative ceremony on the occasion of the liberation of the Mauthausen concentration camp. Will this year's round date also be celebrated without Russia's participation?
— Unfortunately, little has changed here. The organizers of the celebrations on the occasion of the anniversary of the liberation of the Mauthausen concentration camp, which this year will be held on May 11, continue their flawed practice of refusing to invite representatives of the embassy and other Russian foreign institutions. But Russia will be adequately represented. The flag of our country will be carried by a delegation of relatives of former prisoners and compatriots living in Austria, headed by Alexey Konopatchenkov, Vice-President of the Mauthausen International Committee.
On the eve of May 10, we will hold our own commemorative event in Mauthausen with the participation of employees of Russian foreign institutions in Vienna and their family members, teachers and students of the school at the Embassy named after Hero of the Soviet Union General Dmitry Karbyshev.
The territory of the former Nazi concentration camp "Mauthausen" in Austria
— There are more than 200 military graves on the territory of Austria, in which the remains of about 85 thousand soldiers of the Red Army rest. How do they treat monuments dedicated to our soldiers in Austria? What kind of work does the embassy do to preserve monuments to Soviet soldiers?
— We sacredly honor the memory of about 40,000 soldiers and officers of the Red Army who fell during the Vienna Strategic offensive operation. As well as more than 80,000 Red Army soldiers, Soviet prisoners of Nazi concentration camps, who were abducted for forced labor, who are buried in Austrian soil. There are more than 230 Russian and Soviet graves from the First and Second World Wars in Austria. In art . Grave graves of soldiers, prisoners of war and citizens of the Allied Powers forcibly brought to Austria, as well as other United Nations who were at war with Germany, monuments and emblems on these graves, as well as monuments of military glory of the armies that fought on the territory of Austria, are enshrined in the 19 of the State Treaty that states that "Austria undertakes to respect, protect and maintain on the Austrian territory the graves of soldiers, prisoners of war and citizens of the Allied Powers, as well as other United Nations who were at war with Germany, monuments and emblems on these graves, as well as monuments of military glory of the armies that fought on the territory of Austria." against Nazi Germany."
Employees of Russian diplomatic missions annually inspect the condition of memorials in all federal lands (86 graves were examined in 2023, 76 in 2024). Based on the results of the assessment missions, generalized information with conclusions is sent to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Austria, and a plan for repair and restoration work is being drawn up. For example, last year, on our initiative and at the request of the embassy, such full-fledged work was carried out on more than 10 graves.
Acts of vandalism also occur, not only in Vienna itself, but also at individual graves. Each such case entails a musical correspondence.: We protest, and some kind of investigation is underway, usually to no avail — it's difficult to catch vandals. But the Austrian authorities at the federal and local levels always react very seriously to such appeals, and, as a rule, the consequences are quickly eliminated.
In general, I would like to note that Austria takes a responsible approach to fulfilling its obligations to care for and preserve our military graves and monuments from the First and Second World Wars.
"A lot of Austrians retain deep sympathies for our country"
— Against the background of the resumed negotiations between the Kremlin and the White House, does the Russian Embassy in Vienna register a change in the rhetoric of the Austrian authorities towards Moscow? Do the attempts of the Russian Federation and the United States to achieve a peaceful settlement in Ukraine find a positive response in Austrian political circles? How do the people of the Republic feel about these negotiations?
— Austria has been in a state of deep internal political crisis for a long time. The parliamentary elections held in September last year further highlighted the existing systemic contradictions, and the "coalition of losers" formed on the third attempt, consisting of the Austrian People's Party (OVP), the Social Democrats (SPO) and the New Austria and Liberal Forum (NEOS), has not yet been able to offer intelligible answers to the population. The country faces serious socio-economic, migration, demographic, and even educational challenges.
Vienna's flawed foreign policy in recent years has also remained unchanged. Despite its formal neutrality, Austria has firmly embedded itself in the EU's anti-Russian paradigm, meekly, often in the forefront, supports all new sanctions and any kind of thoughtless initiatives against our country, including the growing EU spending on military supplies to Kiev. Against this background, the awkward statements by individual representatives of the Austrian leadership about supporting Washington's peace initiatives, as well as attempts to propose Vienna as a possible negotiating platform for our talks, sound frankly ridiculous. There is no sign of any change in the bellicose rhetoric towards Moscow.
By jointly engaging in a senseless sanctions war with Moscow, the Austrian government has plunged leading industries into recession (industry, trade, transport), inflated inflation, exacerbated social tensions and energy problems. A significant part of ordinary Austrians are openly dissatisfied with the consequences of such geopolitical games of their cabinet to the detriment of the interests of their own people.
Despite the aggressive anti-Russian media coverage, many Austrians remain deeply sympathetic to our country. We are well aware of this from the numerous appeals we receive from citizens from various parts of Austria. Any attempts to isolate or abolish Russia, and even more so Russian culture, suffer a crushing collapse and cause only disappointment.
— Do large expenditures on defense and assistance to Ukraine cause concern in the Austrian society?
— Over the past three years, Austria has provided financial assistance to Ukraine in the amount of about €300 million through various channels. When this is superimposed on the serious consequences of the migration and socio-economic crisis, the recently revealed and increasingly growing "hole" in the state budget (already more than €12 billion), which literally every family feels, such exorbitant expenses to the detriment of their own economy cannot and do not find support or understanding among the population.
According to a recently published opinion poll, almost two thirds of respondents are concerned about what is happening in Ukraine. At the same time, one in four adheres to the opinion that it was the expansion of NATO to the east that provoked the conflict (we are being heard!). Most citizens of the republic do not share the fears that Russia may attack Austria.
The position on the Ukrainian conflict is closely intertwined here with another cornerstone topic — the pseudo-neutral status of the country. According to the same opinion poll, 51% of the population no longer considers Austria to be fully neutral. While 78% of respondents are in favor of maintaining the country's neutrality.
Against the background of such contradictory data, the somersaults of the modern policy of official Vienna are being built. In fact, fait accompli are being created in the spirit of the militaristic attitudes from Brussels, while, by and large, no one is asking about the opinion of the average voter. Of course, we are forced to draw our own conclusions about the lack of any independence of the Austrian diplomatic service today. So, for me, it is absolutely unacceptable that for the third year in a row, the Austrian delegation, together with a group of Western countries, votes in the UN against a resolution condemning the glorification of Nazism. Therefore, the importance of Vienna as one of the authoritative international negotiating platforms has seriously decreased in our eyes.
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