MOSCOW. Jan 30 (Interfax) - The Russian Foreign Ministry took note of the public disapproval in Armenia of the desecration of a monument to the children of besieged Leningrad in Yerevan, and expects the same from the country's authorities, the ministry's spokesperson Maria Zakharova said.
"We resolutely condemn the act of vandalism committed at the monument to the children of besieged Leningrad in Yerevan on January 29. We note with deep regret that this was by no means the first case of the desecration of a monument dedicated to the heroic pages of history shared by Russia and Armenia. We are seeing strong disapproval of the incident on the part of friendly Armenian people. We expect the same from the country's authorities, as well as for any similar manifestation of barbarism to be prevented from now on," Zakharova said in a comment published on the ministry's website.
"These sorts of escapades are being facilitated by a public campaign started in the country to denigrate Russia and its role in the South Caucasus. We will not allow the good memory of 1,384,000 Leningrad residents who perished during the siege to be tarnished," she said.
The director of the Russian Center of Science and Culture in Yerevan has formally complained to the Prosecutor General's Office of Armenia, she said. On January 30, the relevant Armenian authorities launched a criminal inquiry.
"We thank concerned Armenian citizens who, at the call of their hearts, restored justice today by laying new wreathes at the monument in place of ruined ones, with each one also putting a carnation symbolizing every day of the siege. No one will ever be able to rewrite Russia and Armenia's common history," Zakharova said.