During the visit of the President of the Russian Federation Vladimir Putin in Slovenia, on Saturday, 30 July 2016, at Ljubljana's cemetery Žale, we unveiled the monument to Russian and Soviet soldiers who perished during both world wars on the territory of our country.

On this occasion, Mayor Zoran Janković, with a delegation from the City of Ljubljana, laid a wreath at the Monument to the Sons of Russia and the Soviet Union killed on Slovenian soil during the First and Second world wars. He also shook hands with the President of the Russian Federation Vladimir Putin, who was visiting Slovenia on Saturday, 30 July 2016.

The monument comprises eight marble pillars of various heights, topped by bronze storks, the symbol of the Prekmurje region, where the liberation from the Nazis claimed most Soviet soldiers’ lives. Flying cranes are a widely used symbol in Soviet and Russian monuments dedicated to the 2nd World War. The eight pillars symbolize two times the four years of both the world wars on Slovenian soil.

The support for the initiative to install the monument was voiced during the visit of Vladimir Putin in Ljubljana in March 2011. The Municipality of Ljubljana was closely involved in the realization of the project.