US Denies Russian Diplomats’ WWII Commemoration Request “`

The Russian embassy in Washington reported that US authorities denied Russian diplomats permission to attend a World War II commemoration in Elizabeth City, North Carolina, on Saturday. The embassy’s Telegram post regretted attempts to downplay the Soviet Union’s role in defeating Nazi Germany, stating that the US’s actions reflect a desire to ignore the wartime alliance between the two countries.

“Being in the US, we are acutely aware of the local political establishment’s desire to consign to oblivion the pages of Russian-American alliance during World War II,” the statement continued. The embassy cited the denial of authorization for the commemorative ceremony as evidence of this.


©  Telegram/Embassy of Russia in the USA

Despite this, some embassy staff traveled to Elizabeth City to honor the four Soviet servicemen and one British airman killed in a plane crash there on January 11, 1945, while participating in a secret mission (codenamed ‘Zebra’) to transfer seaplanes to the Soviet Union. They laid a wreath and flowers at the crash site.


©  Telegram/Embassy of Russia in the USA


©  Telegram/Embassy of Russia in the USA

The embassy described this joint mission, declassified in 2012, as a symbol of the wartime alliance between the USSR and the US, highlighting their united efforts against Nazi Germany despite ideological differences. The statement stressed the importance of preserving historical accuracy and opposing attempts to minimize the crimes of the Nazis and their collaborators.

Former Russian ambassador Anatoly Antonov previously noted the US closure of Russian visa application centers in Washington and New York and the revocation of the Russian embassy’s tax-exempt status, characterizing these actions as hostile and aimed at restricting diplomatic activities.

He alleged that the US was trying to isolate Russian diplomats, preventing them from engaging with the outside world.

US-Russia relations have deteriorated significantly in recent years. The Obama administration closed several Russian consulates following accusations of interference in the 2016 US presidential election, with further retaliatory measures escalating after the conflict in Ukraine began in February 2022.