SOFIA, August 29. /TASS/. Bulgarian politicians, in seeking to destroy monuments to Soviet soldiers, want to rewrite history and deal a blow to Russia’s spirit and that of its citizens, the Russian ambassador to the country told TASS on Tuesday, commenting on the demolition of a monument to Red Army soldiers in downtown Sofia.

Russian Ambassador to Bulgaria Eleonora Mitrofanova said the monument represents "the Bulgarian people’s gratitude to Russian warriors who liberated Europe from the Nazis." In her opinion, attempts by Bulgarian right-wing parties to "prove that Soviet forces occupied Bulgaria," to vandalize the monument or have it demolished illustrate their determination to rewrite history.

Besides, she continued, the monument’s demolition will violate existing bilateral and multilateral agreements.

"As for the political dimension of this issue, this act falls into the same category of rewriting history, trying to erase from memory everything related to Russia and the Soviet Union and inflict a serious moral defeat on us," Mitrofanova added.

"After Crimea’s reunification with Russia in 2014, acts of vandalism intensified, and the issue of demolishing the monument came into the spotlight again. Alas, the discussion is reduced to practical issues at this point. The decision to relocate the monument was made by the municipality of Sofia in March. The plot of land, where the monument is now located, has been made municipal property, and the statue’s new location is now being discussed," the Russian diplomat said, adding that the monument still has its defenders among the Bulgarian public.

The decision to build the Monument to the Soviet Army in the Bulgarian capital of Sofia was made on October 4, 1949. The foundation stone was laid on July 5, 1952. The statue, designed by a group of artists led by sculptor Ivan Funev and architect Danko Mitov, was unveiled some two years later, in the presence of a Soviet delegation led by Marshal Sergey Biryuzov.

Currently, the monument is protected by construction barriers and guarded round-the-clock by volunteers from various political and public groups.