On the territory of the memorial complex «Monument to the soldiers of the Soviet Army — the liberators of Soviet Latvia and Riga from Nazi invaders» in Riga. Archive photoMOSCOW, May 16 Access to the monument to the Liberators of Riga will be closed until August 31, according to the Delfi portal, citing a report submitted to the government by the Ministry of Internal Affairs. «Access to the monument in Victory Park in Riga will be closed until August 31, and the State Police has prepared a special plan of measures to ensure public order and security in connection with further decisions on the dismantling of the monument, according to the report of the Ministry of Internal Affairs submitted to the government,» the message says. The Latvian Parliament previously suspended the clause of the intergovernmental agreement with Russia on the protection of monuments Soviet soldiers, which allows dismantling the monument to the Liberators of Riga. The police closed access to the monument, the municipal services removed the flowers laid by May 9 with a tractor, and later the residents of the city began to bring them again. Last week, the Latvian Parliament allowed the demolition of the monument. The Riga City Council voted for the demolition, instructing the specialized agency to ensure the dismantling of the monument. Against the backdrop of Latvia's decision, Andrey Klimov, head of the Federation Council commission for the protection of state sovereignty, told RIA Novosti that Latvia needs to be «reasoned» by taking extremely tough measures, including economic ones. Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov called what is happening «an international outrage».
