[Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs: Takaichi’s remarks asking Russia to dismantle the monument are “absurd and ignore history”] On September 7, Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Zakharova responded to Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi’s remarks on the 6th asking Russia to dismantle the monument to the victory over militaristic Japan. She said that this is as absurd as asking “the wind should not blow and the sun should stop shining.” Don’t spread the “disease” of ignoring your country’s history to other countries. On the 4th, the city of Khabarovsk in the Russian Far East held an unveiling ceremony for a monument commemorating the victory over militaristic Japan. The monument is currently the largest monument in Russia commemorating the victory over militaristic Japan. It was built in cooperation with the Russian Military Historical Society and the Khabarovsk Territory Government. In the center of the monument is a 15-meter-tall statue of a Soviet soldier, representing the Soviet Red Army that defeated the main force of the Japanese Kwantung Army. The soldiers were holding long guns, and a nearby boundary monument with a chrysanthemum pattern was smashed in half. Zakharova said on the 6th: “Our territory is protected by our ancestors, our history is based on facts, and our memories are engraved on monuments. Zakharova specifically pointed out that Japan ignores its own history and does not infect other countries with this "disease." Oleg Matvechev, a member of the Russian State Duma (lower house of parliament), said that World War II ended with Japan's unconditional surrender, and the monument in Khabarovsk was designed for this purpose. Against this background, Japan’s request to demolish the monument is “ridiculous.” Ovsiyenko, vice president of the Russian Military Historical Society, said that the destroyed chrysanthemum pattern on the monument is a symbol of militaristic Japan, and that the design of the monument is correct and consistent with historical facts. (CCTV News)