At the same, the ministry noted that there were some positive examples in Poland of preserving the memory of Soviet soldiers that helped to free the territories occupied by Nazis.
"We have different historical memory in Poland and Russia. The monuments to Soviet soldiers in Poland are more likely perceived as symbolic objects of totalitarian past," Marciniak said.
Marchinyak stressed that Poland’s authorities usually take up a decision not to demolish, but to relocate the monuments.
"As a rule, if the [authorities] make a decision about relocation, they provide a justification… As usual, the monuments are relocated to the cemeteries of Soviet soldiers, which amounted to 1,875 in Poland. [The monuments] are relocated mainly from central squares, central streets," Marchinyak said.
Marchinyak noted that relocation and dismantling of monuments was a matter of disputes with the Russian authorities due to the different understanding of the intergovernmental agreement of 1994 regarding the burials of victims of wars and repressions.
"Moscow says that this agreement is related to historic symbolic sites. We think that the agreement covers only the grave sites," Marchinyak added.
