Russian envoy vows to preserve Hong Kong heritage sites after WWII graves found

Russia is working to preserve heritage sites in Hong Kong related to the second world war, the nation’s top diplomat in the city has said, after the discovery of the local graves of seamen from the country who were killed by a Japanese bombing campaign.

Anatoly Kargapolov, the Russian consul general in Hong Kong, also said his country would never forget China’s “heroic resistance” in its fight against the Japanese during World War II, which he said allowed the Soviet forces to concentrate on defeating Nazi Germany.

Kargapolov was speaking on Thursday at the opening ceremony of a photo exhibition in Hong Kong Central Library that commemorates the 80th anniversary of the Manchurian Operation – the Soviet Union’s invasion of the Japanese Empire’s puppet state in northeastern China in the waning days of the war.

While the Soviet Union had a neutrality pact with Japan throughout much of the war, the invasion is sometimes credited as one of the key contributors to Japan’s unconditional surrender, alongside the United States’ nuclear bombing of Nagasaki and Hiroshima.

Kargapolov took the opportunity to voice his admiration for China’s contributions to the war.

“We deeply appreciate the respect and care shown by the Chinese people in keeping this memory alive here in Hong Kong. The Russian consulate general is also working to preserve our shared second world war heritage,” he said.