A traditional meeting for partisans and underground fighters from Belarus, Russia, and Latvia took place at the Mound of Friendship

"In this truly sacred place for us, on the mound, patriots of Belarus, Russia, and Latvia have met for many decades to remember their combat years, their fallen comrades. Unfortunately, almost all veterans of the Great Patriotic War have passed away. And now, perhaps, the format is changing, because today the heirs of those people who liberated this land, who fought here against the fascist enemy, are meeting. Today it is truly important to remember that truth and not to erase this truth. We learn that nearby, literally 15 meters away in the European Union, Soviet monuments are being destroyed, and these monuments are being destroyed by the very people whose ancestors fought against us. I am talking about the SS men who exterminated the civilian population. We remember "Salaspils" today – a concentration camp that was under the jurisdiction of Latvians. Not Germans, but Latvians, who took blood from our little children from the Rossony, Sebezh, and Osvyia districts. It is important to talk about this so that the memory of the great tragedy, the great feat, is never forgotten and so that we educate our youth on this," noted Vladimir Terentyev.

Annually, partisans and underground fighters from Belarus, Russia, and Latvia used to gather at the Kurgan Druzhby (Friendship Mound) to honor the memory of those fallen in the Great Patriotic War, laying flowers and wreaths at the memorial complex. This time, delegations paid tribute to the heroes at the monument to Komsomol underground fighters of the village of Proshki, located on the Belarusian side. Then, they honored the monument to partisan scout Maria Pynto on the Russian side. Previously, on the day of the meeting, residents of Latvia also used to pass baskets of flowers over the fence. This year, the alley where the monument to Hero of the Soviet Union Imants Sudmalis stands is empty, and the clearing nearby appears abandoned.

The Kurgan Druzhby itself was erected on July 3, 1959. Soil for it was taken from the graves of partisans and Red Army soldiers. Alleys leading to the three countries extend from the artificial mound. Monuments to partisans who died fighting for their land are erected on each of them. During the Great Patriotic War, the paths of the people's avengers from the three countries ran along the border of the three states. With the unification of detachments, the partisan territory began to form here.-0-