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From Berlingske Tidende today, I've tried to translate an extract of the article.
I wonder what horrible physical torment President Putin will be publicly wishing for to strike our PM, for making such outrageous statements.
3 May 2005
Tallinn/Copenhagen/Prague:
Prime Minister Anders Fogh Rasmussen (Venstre) is asking Russia to issue an apology for the 50 year long occupation of the Baltic countries by the Soviet Union. The Prime Minister also expresses his complete sympathy with the decision made by Estonia and Lithuania to boycott an upcoming memorial ceremony in Moscow in remembrance of the 60th anniversary for the end of World War II.
"We know from experience that it helps the efforts of reconciliation to recognize mistakes of the past - and to apologize on behalf of the nation" Anders Fogh Rasmussen said as he commented yesterday on the controversial matter of the Baltic demand for an official Russian apology. The Prime Minister is currently on a tour of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania.
The Prime Minister stressed that "We have seen German leaders apologize for mistakes and criminal acts commited in the past. Of course present day leaders cannot be held responsible for past decisions. But in order to create a sense of reconciliation, it can serve as a valuable means of furthering progress between countries, if leaders of today would be willing to acknowledge such mistakes made in the past."
The statements are seen by commentators as striking a very sensitive chord with Russia, who is expected to react harshly towards Denmark. It's the first time that any EU state leader has openly supported the Baltic countries' call for an apology.
The Prime Minister's appeal comes at a time when concerns about apologizing seem very far from entering the Russian political agenda. In contrast, President Putin last week in an address to the nation even expressed his regret that the Soviet Union had collapsed. The President called it the greatest geopolitical disaster of the 20th century.
Lithuanian President Valdas Adamkus was pleased by the expressed support of Denmark, but did not expect the present Russian administration to issue an apology. "It would be an achievement in itself, if the Russian government just acknowledged that those 50 years of occupation even took place. That is the expectation of the Lithuanian people" Adamkus said.
The Russian foreign ministry said yesterday it had no comments to make on the matter.
The Prime Minister's public support to the Baltic demands for an apology coincides with an expected official Danish apology tomorrow (eve of the 60th anniversary of Denmark's liberation) for the policy of cooperation with the German occupational forces, and for the return to Germany of 21 Jewish refugees during the occupation.
Tallinn/Copenhagen/Prague:
Prime Minister Anders Fogh Rasmussen (Venstre) is asking Russia to issue an apology for the 50 year long occupation of the Baltic countries by the Soviet Union. The Prime Minister also expresses his complete sympathy with the decision made by Estonia and Lithuania to boycott an upcoming memorial ceremony in Moscow in remembrance of the 60th anniversary for the end of World War II.
"We know from experience that it helps the efforts of reconciliation to recognize mistakes of the past - and to apologize on behalf of the nation" Anders Fogh Rasmussen said as he commented yesterday on the controversial matter of the Baltic demand for an official Russian apology. The Prime Minister is currently on a tour of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania.
The Prime Minister stressed that "We have seen German leaders apologize for mistakes and criminal acts commited in the past. Of course present day leaders cannot be held responsible for past decisions. But in order to create a sense of reconciliation, it can serve as a valuable means of furthering progress between countries, if leaders of today would be willing to acknowledge such mistakes made in the past."
The statements are seen by commentators as striking a very sensitive chord with Russia, who is expected to react harshly towards Denmark. It's the first time that any EU state leader has openly supported the Baltic countries' call for an apology.
The Prime Minister's appeal comes at a time when concerns about apologizing seem very far from entering the Russian political agenda. In contrast, President Putin last week in an address to the nation even expressed his regret that the Soviet Union had collapsed. The President called it the greatest geopolitical disaster of the 20th century.
Lithuanian President Valdas Adamkus was pleased by the expressed support of Denmark, but did not expect the present Russian administration to issue an apology. "It would be an achievement in itself, if the Russian government just acknowledged that those 50 years of occupation even took place. That is the expectation of the Lithuanian people" Adamkus said.
The Russian foreign ministry said yesterday it had no comments to make on the matter.
The Prime Minister's public support to the Baltic demands for an apology coincides with an expected official Danish apology tomorrow (eve of the 60th anniversary of Denmark's liberation) for the policy of cooperation with the German occupational forces, and for the return to Germany of 21 Jewish refugees during the occupation.
They represent a potential fifth column.
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