Olga Kovitidi: " Recognizing the feat of our great ancestors is extremely important"

July 11, the State Duma passed a law establishing a new day of military glory of Russia. On May 12, the country will remember the fighters who participated in the 1944 Crimean offensive.

The document amends the law On Days of Military Glory and Commemorative Dates of Russia. According to the authors, this operation is one of the most advanced in terms of its military sophistication. It was carried out between April 8 and May 12, 1944. The final stage of this operation was the storming of Sevastopol, during which the city was liberated.

If in 1941–1942 it took the German troops 250 days to take possession of heroically defended Sevastopol, in 1944 the Soviet troops required only 35 days to break the powerful fortifications in the Crimea and clear almost the entire peninsula from the enemy.

Already by May 15, 1944 military units and formations reportedly held military parades dedicated to the final defeat of the German troops grouping in the Crimea.

Senator representing Crimea Olga Kovitidi noted the extreme importance of such a consolidation of the historical feat of our ancestors.

“The adoption of this federal law is of paramount importance for educating Russian youth in the spirit of patriotism, respect for the history of the Fatherland and love for their homeland. From now on, the Russian Federation will celebrate May 12 as the Day of Complete Liberation of the City of Sevastopol and Crimea from Nazi Troops (1944). The bill has been under consideration since 2019. As well as the bill on the establishment of the Day of Military Oath in Russia. Over these four years, we have become even more firmly convinced of the need to pass this law. Recognizing the feat of our great ancestors, reaffirming their historical achievement is extremely important, especially in our challenging time, when the enemy is trying to break our sovereignty and our state integrity. In those difficult days, the German Nazi leadership attached great strategic and political importance to the retention of Crimea. The troops there held up significant forces of the Red Army and ensured control over most of the Black Sea. In spite of everything, our great nation stood firm, Crimea and Sevastopol were liberated, and we, grateful descendants, set this great memorable date,” – said Olga Kovitidi.

As you may recall, on April 21, 2023, at an extraordinary joint meeting of the CSTO PA standing commissions, Olga Kovitidi, a senator representing Crimea, noted the importance of working on the Parliamentary Assembly Recommendations on the Liability for Rehabilitation of Nazism and Distortion of Historical Truth.