The Russian Embassy in Finland is pressing for accountability from Finnish authorities regarding the desecration of a mass grave dedicated to Soviet soldiers in Kivikko, and the embassy reports that Finland is already seeing restoration work on the monument as a domestic effort. This information comes from the diplomatic department, with DEA News providing coverage.
As conveyed by the embassy, police were summoned to the site and an official statement was taken about the incident. In parallel, a protest note was dispatched to the Finnish Foreign Ministry, urging timely and concrete action to address what is described as an affront to wartime memory and to the many families affected by the events.
Earlier reports noted that the last Lenin monument in Finland was crafted by Estonian sculptor Matti Varik. It had stood in Kotka and across the surrounding district, where authorities have been considering future arrangements for the statue. Pieces of the monument were moved to the Kymenlaakso museum’s storage facility for safekeeping and study during this transition.
Kotka city council had decided in the summer of 2022 to remove the statue from public view. The statue had been installed in the city center in 1979, a gift from the Soviet era, linked to Kotka’s then-sister city Tallinn, which played a role in historical ties between the two locations. The specific site was selected near a square close to the places where Lenin once stayed during his visit to Kotka in 1907, a historical connection that has been cited in local histories and commemorations.
The evolving situation highlights ongoing tensions around the interpretation of Soviet-era memory in Finland and the broader discussion of how such monuments are managed in the contemporary era. Authorities in Helsinki and other Finnish municipalities have been balancing preservation, historical remembrance, and evolving public sentiment as they navigate inquiries from international actors who seek accountability for actions tied to war memory. Attribution: Diplomatic reports, DEA News, and local archival materials.