(MENAFN) Russia has strongly criticized Germany over reports that Russian and Belarusian representatives are being excluded from upcoming World War II Victory anniversary commemorations. Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova responded to a report by Berliner Zeitung, which claimed that Germany’s Foreign Ministry had circulated confidential memos advising against inviting officials from Moscow and Minsk to the 80th anniversary events. The documents allegedly recommended removing any Russian or Belarusian participants from related ceremonies.

Zakharova condemned the move as an offensive gesture, stating that it mirrors the actions of Nazi Germany. She described the reported exclusion as a "blatant insult" and accused German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock and her team of echoing the tactics of Nazi-era death squads, the Einsatzgruppen, which targeted civilians based on their ethnicity.

The spokeswoman claimed that banning Russian nationals from Victory Day events essentially revives the discriminatory and inhumane practices of the past. She also referenced a previous report by Bild, which revealed that Baerbock’s grandfather had been a committed Nazi and a decorated Wehrmacht officer during World War II.

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