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Estonian parliament approves resolution condemning Russia’s actions during WWII

The resolution also condemns the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact and its secret protocols

A view of the Estonian parliament Valery Sharifulin/TASS

A view of the Estonian parliament

© Valery Sharifulin/TASS

TALLINN, February 19. /TASS/. The Estonian parliament has approved a resolution on Wednesday criticizing the Soviet Union’s actions during the Second World War, the ERR online portal informs. The document is declaratory in nature.

The resolution condemns the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact and its secret protocols.

The document also expresses support for Poland and other European states, "which Russia has lately considered responsible for the start of the Second World War." The authors of the document claim that the Russian government is "attempting to rewrite history, denying the role of the Soviet Union as one of the main initiators of the Second World War."

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During his annual news conference on December 19, Russian President Vladimir Putin recalled that the USSR was the last country in Europe to sign the treaty on non-aggression with Germany, known as the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact. Putin noted that the Soviet forces entered Poland in line with the protocols under this pact, whereas, Poland had earlier taken part in dividing Czechoslovakia. By the time when the Soviet troops entered the territory, the Polish government had lost control over the armed forces and fled the country. As the Russian president said, "there was no one to talk to."

In response, the Polish Foreign Ministry voiced concerns over Putin’s remark. In its statement, the ministry noted that Putin’s words "represented a wrong picture of events" and aroused concern and mistrust.

In January, the parliaments of Poland and Latvia approved similar declarative resolutions criticizing Russia’s behavior.

Russian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said earlier that Russia’s position on the results of the Second World War had not changed. "We adhere to the results of the Second World War, their legal description and their legal binding by the Nuremberg trials," she stressed.

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