It is a 79 meters high work from 1985 to commemorate the victory of the Soviet army over Nazi Germany. According to a reporter from the French AFP news agency on the scene, it had become a haunt for supporters of the Kremlin in Latvia.
Russians make up about 30 percent of the Latvian population. A part of that minority gathers at the memorial on May 9 each year to commemorate the 1945 victory. But for most Latvians, May 9, 1945 marks the beginning of decades of Soviet occupation.
Until now, the monument was protected by a 1994 treaty between Latvia and Russia. But in May, Latvia’s parliament voted in favor of an amendment to that treaty, which allowed the work to be brought down. The amendment was part of the Russian invasion of Ukraine at the beginning of this year.