Russia has introduced to the UN a draft resolution condemning the glorification of Nazism and the desecration of World War II monuments.
The UN General Assembly committee on social and humanitarian issues will vote on the document at the beginning of next week. The UN General Assembly, which usually supports the decision of the committee, will look at the resolution in mid-December.
The resolution condemns the construction of memorials in honor of former Nazis and Waffen-SS soldiers and the holding of public pro-Nazi demonstrations. It also includes recommendations to prevent the proliferation of neo-Nazi ideas on the Internet.
Russia has been introducing similar resolutions to the UN since 2005. Every year, the resolutions are supported by an increasing number of countries. Last year 124 countries voted in favor of the resolution, while 55 delegations abstained. The United States was the only nation to vote against it.
Parades in honor of Waffen-SS veterans, involving veterans from the Latvian Legion and the 20th Estonian SS Division and their supporters, are held annually in Latvia and Estonia. Russia has repeatedly criticized the Baltic States for allowing these parades to take place.
In April 2007, a Soviet war memorial was dismantled in the Estonian capital, Tallinn, just before the May 9Victory Day celebrations in Russia. The move led to street protests in which over 1,000 people were arrested and one Russian national was killed.
WASHINGTON, November 10 (RIA Novosti)
