MOSCOW, August 26. /TASS/. Pierre de Gaulle, the grandson of General Charles de Gaulle, the founder of the Fifth French Republic, says France's refusal to invite Russian representatives to events dedicated to the 80th anniversary of the liberation of Paris is an insult to the memory of war heroes.

"Personally, I was very hurt and outraged that Russia was not invited to the celebrations [of the Battle of Normandy]. This is like spitting in the face of all those civilians and servicemen who died fighting for the liberation of the country," he said at a TASS conference dedicated to the history of the liberation of Paris from Nazi occupation.

He pointed out that Russia paid a very heavy price to defeat the Nazis. "Without the partisan spirit, the spirit of resistance and the bravery of the Russian army, it would have been much more difficult, if not impossible, for Europe to free itself from the Nazi invasion," de Gaulle emphasized.

"Today we are fighting for the truth, for the informational and historical truth. I am fighting very hard against this strategy of denying the culture and identity of nations," he added.

Liberation of Paris

The battles for the liberation of Paris were fought on August 19-25, 1944. The tactical successes of the Allied forces and their proximity to the capital prompted the Free French forces - Parisian underground fighters - to launch an uprising in the city. Battles with the fascists covered the whole city, more than 600 barricades were built, 28,000 people were killed in battles. In fact, Paris was liberated by the Resistance groups, the Allied forces, which entered the capital on August 24, essentially saving the day for the Parisian underground fighters. On August 25, the collaborationist government of the Vichy regime finally fell.

Russian emigrants played a huge role in the French Resistance movement. In 1940 they published the first underground leaflet of the same name and began to distribute it in Paris. At least 5,000 Soviet citizens and Russian emigrants fought in the ranks of the movement. The Soviet leadership played a decisive role in nominating the key figure of the Resistance movement, General Charles de Gaulle, as the leader of the Republic, being the first to recognize him as the head of the National Committee of Free France in 1941.