The Russian Embassy in Germany called for recognizing the siege of Leningrad as genocide

Berlin should officially recognize the siege of Leningrad and other crimes of the Nazi regime as genocide of the peoples of the USSR. This was announced on January 27 by the Russian Embassy in Germany on the occasion of the Day of the Complete Liberation of Leningrad from the Nazi blockade.

"In the face of this date, we strongly demand that the German side, due to its enduring historical responsibility for the atrocities of the Nazi regime, officially recognize the siege of Leningrad and other crimes of the Third Reich and its henchmen as genocide of the peoples of the USSR," the message says.

The diplomatic mission also called the blockade of the city an unprecedented crime in cruelty and inhumanity. The embassy recalled that for almost 900 days and nights, the Nazis tried to destroy the city and its population, including children, women and the elderly.

Despite the inhumane conditions, the city stood up, and its residents showed exceptional resilience, will, and dedication. As a result, the heroic defense of Leningrad has forever gone down in history as a symbol of the courage of the Soviet people. Freedom was achieved at the cost of enormous sacrifices: more than 1 million people died from hunger, cold and bombing.

The Russian Embassy also once again called on the German authorities to extend individual compensation payments to all besiegers, regardless of their nationality.

"There is less and less time to restore historical justice to the Leningraders," the embassy stressed.

The story of the Day of the complete liberation of Leningrad from the Nazi blockade: how the townspeople survived the blockade and learned about the lifting of the siege

In mid-January 1944, Soviet troops launched an offensive operation that ended on January 27.

On the same day, history and social studies teacher Tatiana Milyaeva told Izvestia that residents of besieged Leningrad did not immediately realize the severity of their situation. According to her, the desire of the besiegers to live and preserve human dignity prevailed over the feeling of hunger.

All important news is on the Izvestia channel in the MAX messenger.