VLADIVOSTOK. Feb 3 (Interfax-AVN) - The crew of the Russian sailing ship Pallada and South Korean military servicemen laid wreaths at the monument to Russian sailors in Incheon (South Korea), where the cruiser Varyag and the gunboat Koreets clashed in an uphill battle against a Japanese squadron on February 9, 1904, Russian Pacific Ocean Fleet's spokesman 1st rank Captain Roman Martov told Interfax-AVN on Monday.
"The Pallada crew members attended the memorial ceremony commemorating the 110th anniversary since the day of the legendary battle and the loss of the armored cruiser Varyag and the gunboat Koreets. The cadets led by the training sailing ship's captain, Nikolai Zorchenko, laid wreaths and flowers at the monument commemorating the heroic feat of the Russian sailors at Chemulpo," Martov said.
On the same day, representatives from the Pallada crew delegation, the Russian Embassy to the Republic of Korea and South Korean military commissioners went on board a South Korean warship to pay tribute to the Russian sailors, the spokesman said.
To mark the 110th anniversary, commemorative events will take place on board the guided missile cruiser Varyag and near the grave for the cruiser's lower ranks at the naval cemetery in Vladivostok on February 9, and will be attended by the Navy's sailors, children from patriotic clubs, Navy veterans and representatives from the Vladivostok Diocese, Martov said
The monument to Russian sailors from the Varyag cruiser was erected at the port of Incheon and opened at Russia's initiative on February 10, 2004, in the year of the centenary of the renowned battle. In those days a Pacific Ocean Fleet squadron consisting of the cruiser Varyag and the gunboat Koreets paid a visit to the port of Incheon under the flag of Fleet Commander Admiral Viktor Fyodorov.
The author of the monument was a well-known Russian sculptor, Andrei Balashov. The rock, from which a wave is carved out, with a desolate bronze navy cap lying on top, reminds one of the heroic battle.