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No plans to sell iconic Aurora cruiser to Burger King — museum chief

Some media reported earlier that Burger King wanted to buy the famous ship to turn it into a fast food restaurant

Aurora cruiser Ruslan Shamukov/TASS

Aurora cruiser

© Ruslan Shamukov/TASS

MOSCOW, November 30. /TASS/. The legendary Aurora cruiser, one of the symbols of St. Petersburg, will not be sold to Burger King fast food chain, Ruslan Nekhai, the director of the Central Naval Museum, said on Thursday.

"Any commercial offers regarding the Aurora cruiser are out of the question. The cruiser is a ship of the Baltic Fleet and part of the Central Naval Museum," Nekhai said. "We have not received any such requests."

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Some Russian media reported earlier that Burger King wanted to buy the Aurora cruiser from the Central Naval Museum for 50 mln rubles (more than $853,000) to turn the famous ship built in 1903 into a fast food restaurant.

According to media reports, the company promised to preserve the ship’s exterior and the museum exposition.

A blank shot from Aurora’s gun signaled the start of the assault on the Winter Palace, which marked the beginning of the 1917 Bolshevik Revolution.

Since 1947, Aurora remains permanently anchored on the Neva River St. Petersburg’s center. In 1957, the ship became a museum.

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FACTBOX: Collective Security Treaty Organization

The Collective Security Treaty came into force on April 20, 1994 to herald the emergence what would eventually become the Collective Security Treaty Organization. The six member-countries are Russia, Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan

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Moscow demands international organizations condemn killing of Russian war correspondent

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