A concrete column in the Latvian capital that has sparked controversy for years has been dismantled to cheers and applause from onlookers.
The obelisk – the centerpiece of a monument marking the Soviet Union’s victory over Nazi Germany which occupied the Baltic states in World War II – was built in 1985 when Latvia was still part of the USSR .
The structure, consisting of five spiers with three Soviet stars at the top, sat between two groups of statues – a group of three Red Army soldiers and a woman representing the “Motherland” with her arms raised.
It towered nearly 80 meters (262ft) high in central Riga before it overturned and crashed into a nearby pond in the city’s Victory Park.
Heavy machinery had been seen behind a green fence prior to its removal. The statues were taken away earlier.
The concrete structure was dismantled in Riga
Latvian Foreign Minister Edgars Rinkevics tweeted: “Latvia is tearing down one of the symbols of Soviet occupation in Riga. Closing another painful page of history and seeking a better future.”
The obelisk has been controversial since Latvia regained its independence in 1991 and eventually became a member of NATO and also a member of the European Union.
Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February led authorities in several Eastern European countries to accelerate the removal of symbols from their previous communist eras.
Photo: AP
The Latvian parliament voted to demolish the monument in May, and the Riga city council followed suit.
Ethnic Russians make up about 25% of the Latvian population.
