MOSCOW -- Moscow Mayor Yury Luzhkov said today that the World War II memorial demolished in Georgia on December 19 will be restored at Moscow's Victory Park at Poklonnaya Hill, RFE/RL's Russian Service reports.
Luzhkov said the sculptor of the demolished monument, prominent Soviet-era sculptor Merab Berdzenishvili, would be asked to help recreate the monument.
The 46-meter-high monument was demolished on December 19 in Kutaisi, accidentally killing a woman and her young daughter who lived nearby.
The Georgian government said it demolished the memorial to make room for a new building that will host some sessions of the national parliament.
Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili sacked Mikheil Chogovadze, the governor of the Imereti region, over the tragic accident.
Three managers of the demolition company were arrested on December 21-22.
At a Russian cabinet session on December 22, Prime Minister Vladimir Putin called the demolition another "attempt to erase the memory of the joint past of the former Soviet nations."
He also said the monument could be recreated in Moscow.
Luzhkov said the sculptor of the demolished monument, prominent Soviet-era sculptor Merab Berdzenishvili, would be asked to help recreate the monument.
The 46-meter-high monument was demolished on December 19 in Kutaisi, accidentally killing a woman and her young daughter who lived nearby.
The Georgian government said it demolished the memorial to make room for a new building that will host some sessions of the national parliament.
Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili sacked Mikheil Chogovadze, the governor of the Imereti region, over the tragic accident.
Three managers of the demolition company were arrested on December 21-22.
At a Russian cabinet session on December 22, Prime Minister Vladimir Putin called the demolition another "attempt to erase the memory of the joint past of the former Soviet nations."
He also said the monument could be recreated in Moscow.
