A monument to Soviet people will be unveiled in Noyers-Saint-Martin

A ceremony of opening a monument to 4,643 citizens of the Soviet Union who perished in France during the Second World War will be opened in Noyers-Saint-Martin (Oise, France) on Friday June 21. The said citizens escaped from German imprisonment to fight in the French Resistance against German occupiers.

The remains of Soviet men and officers were moved to Noyers-Saint-Martin from North-Eastern France in 1980. The monument was erected at the initiative of the Russian Embassy in France and the French Defence Ministry. Called "The Flowers of Russia," the monument was designed by prominent Moscow sculptor Vladimir Surovtsev.

The Commercial Bank for Northern Europe (Eurobank, the Paris branch of the Central Bank of Russia) and the Russian Alluminium joint stock company provided the money.

French Defence Minister Michele Alliot-Marie and Russian Ambassador Alexander Avdeyev, as well as a delegation of French Resistance veterans are expected to attend the unveiling ceremony.