RIGA, April 29 (RIA Novosti, Yury Guralnik) - It is for the first time in Latvia that a city Duma (Salaspils) has passed the decision to give one-time allowance to Soviet war veterans. On the occasion of the 60th anniversary of Victory over Nazism, they will get $60 each-this decision has been taken in defiance of continued criticism from a Right-wing nationalist minority in the Duma, reports the Salaspils Duma.
Official Riga's position is as follows: the Nazi occupation of the Baltic republics was changed for Soviet occupation as a result of the Red Army's victory, and therefore war veterans have been dubbed as occupants. Rather an unseemly reference was made to them by Latvian President Vaira Vyke-Freiberga.
From 1941 to 1944, Salaspils was the site of a concentration camp where the Nazis killed 53,000 people. If the camp affiliations are considered, the victims amount to 100,000.
