Opening of the Memorial to the fallen soldiers in Manchester
On 3 September 2020 Ambassador Andrei Kelin participated in the unveiling ceremony of the Memorial in honoured memory of the Soviet soldiers who gave their lives liberating Europe, and in recognition of the brave people of the besieged Leningrad. Participants of the ceremony also included Lord Mayor of Manchester City Councillor Abid Latif Chohan, representatives of the Russian Embassy in London and the Russian community of Manchester.
Ambassador Kelin addressed the guests with a short speech:
"Lord Mayor,
Ladies and gentlemen,
I am pleased to welcome you at the unveiling ceremony of the “Memorial in honoured memory of the Soviet soldiers who gave their lives liberating Europe, and in recognition of the brave people of the besieged Leningrad”.
It is particularly important that we have gathered here today, on the day when World War II had ended. This day made it clear that the enemy will never be able to break and suppress the people who stood up to defend their Motherland. The significance of the long and bloody battle for the Victory is huge.
We shall always remember the high price the Soviet people paid for it. Today’s ceremony is also an opportunity to remember the sincere brotherhood of arms of Soviet and British people, the twin cities’ ties between Manchester and Leningrad.
This memorial is another symbol of our common memory, a symbol of our worship for the great and selfless heroic deed of the hero soldier, the liberator soldier, the winner soldier, the soldier who saved Europe and the entire world from Nazism. Time has no grip over this deed and it cannot and must not be forgotten. We shall not let this happen.
I would like to thank everyone who made it possible to unveil this memorial: the Manchester City Council, the Committee for External Relations of Saint-Petersburg, the Friendship Society of Saint-Petersburg and Manchester, the Russian construction company “LSR Group”, Russian School Znaniye in London, our compatriots, who greatly contributed to this project, Natalia Maximova, the architect of the memorial, and, of course, Nick Robertson, the stone carver and creator of the memorial.
On this glorious day allow me to wish all Russians and Britons good health, longevity and prosperity, and most importantly, a peaceful sky over your heads.
Our duty is to remember every hero.
Our deepest gratitude is to all the soldiers and commanders.
Glory to the soldiers of the Great Patriotic War and eternal memory to the fallen."
The ceremony ended with a memorial service by father Anatoly Vihrov Diocese of Sourozh of the Russian Orthodox Church.
On 22 October 2020, Russian Ambassador to the UK Andrei Kelin visited the Natural History Museum in London to see the photo exhibition dedicated to the Wildlife Photographer of the Year contest, which was won by the Russian photographer Sergey Gorshkov and his capture of the rare and glorious Amur tigress "The Embrace".
On 6 October, 2020 Ambassador of the Russian Federation to the United Kingdom Mr Andrei Kelin delivered a speech at Harrow School, one of the oldest and most prominent British private schools for boys.
On 19 August 2020 diplomats of the Russian Embassy visited British enterprise “Albert Bartlett” in county Norfolk which specialises in potato processing and producing potato meals. Diplomats met the owners and managers of the company and then had a tour of the enterprise. Matters related to the development of cooperation in humanitarian and agricultural areas, as well as organising a visit to Russian agricultural enterprises were discussed.
On 24-25 July 2020 the Agricultural Attaché of the Russian Embassy Vladimir Derbenskiy visited agricultural farm Trevear Farm and potato processing plant in Cornwall.
Vladimir Derbenskiy met the owner and had a tour of fields and livestock farm. Matters related to the development of cooperation between Russian and British farmers and organizing a visit to Russian agricultural enterprises were discussed.
On the Day of Memory and Sorrow Ambassador Andrei Kelin took part in a commemorative Candle Lighting Ceremony near the Soviet War Memorial in London. Together we pay tribute to those who sacrificed their lives defending the Motherland against the Nazis during the Great Patriotic War.
On 17 June 2020, the Embassy hosted the ceremony of presenting school diplomas of upper (full) secondary education to the graduates of the Russian Embassy School. Messages of congratulations were said by Ambassador Andrei Kelin and the school Principal Sergey Salomakhin, who presented the long-awaited diplomas as well as gold medals to those who completed the school course with excellence.
On 9 May 2020 Ambassador Andrei Kelin participated in the wreath laying ceremony at the Soviet War Memorial near the Imperial War Museum in London on the occasion of the 75th Anniversary of Victory in the Great Patriotic War.
In total there are 18 Soviet military graves across the UK. Throughout April and beginning of May Ambassador Andrei Kelin and Embassy staff have paid tribute and laid flowers to the graves of Soviet soldiers of World War II, buried at cemeteries in Aldershot, Chester, Liverpool, Shaftesbury and Tidworth. Part of the memorial work will also be covered by our compatriots living in the UK. It is important to preserve the memory of these heroes who fought for our freedom and died while defending the Motherland.
On 22 April 2020 Ambassador Andrei Kelin and his spouse, as well as the Embassy Defence and Military Attaché Colonel Mikhail Ivanov, paid tribute and laid flowers to the graves of to Soviet soldiers of World War II, buried at Tidworth Military Cemetery. The ceremony is part of a series of commemorative events dedicated to the 75th Anniversary of Victory in World War II.
On 4th March 2020 Ambassador Andrei Kelin visited the Cambridge Union. His Excellency was warmly welcomed and briefed the members on the current state of relations between Russia and the UK, as well as outlined Russia’s position on most pressing international issues. The guests showed genuine interest in the discussion, while the Ambassador was more than happy to answer all possible questions from the audience after his talk. During the visit Mr Kelin also signed in the guestbook of the Union.
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