Russian opposition

Though 66 years have passed since the end of World War II, celebrations remembering the Allied victory over Nazi Germany still have an important place in Russia today.

Last year, for the first time ever, Allied troops took part in the annual military parade in Moscow commemorating the anniversary. Their participation was designed to express the historical ties that bound the nations in this dark chapter of history.

A question of historical accuracy

The participation of the German Federal Armed Forces, the Bundeswehr, in such a parade would have the potential to be seen as a gesture of reconciliation. A recent study, however, found that 57 percent of Russians firmly reject the idea of German participation.

The study, conducted by the WPA Institute on behalf of Deutsche Welle in early April, asked 1,000 Russian citizens between the ages of 18 and 60 what they thought about the German army taking part in the parade.

It found that the opposition to German participation was not down to a negative view of modern Germany. Only 8 percent of people attributed their opposition to a belief that the Germans were still to be regarded with suspicion.

Instead, opposition was overwhelmingly down to a concern for historical accuracy. Almost a half of respondents (49 percent) answered that from a historical point of view, German participation wouldn't be correct.

Moreover, a third of respondents (29 percent) answered that they didn't oppose German involvement at all. They believed that today's Germany has nothing to do with the Germany of 1945.

Around 14 percent of people surveyed didn't have an opinion.

Generational differences

Significantly, 37 percent of the youngest age group surveyed, the 18 to 29-year-olds, were in favor of the participation of the Bundeswehr.

Fifty-eight percent of respondents aged 50 to 60 rejected the idea on the grounds that it wasn't historically accurate.

Authors: Ingo Mannteufel / Kishor Sridhar / ccp
Editor: Martin Kuebler