Crimea demands Berlin return antiquities looted by Nazi Germany

Moscow-(ST)- The Speaker of the Parliament of the Russian Republic of Crimea, Vladimir Konstantinov, called on Berlin to return the collections of the Republic’s museums that were looted by Germany during the era of Nazism and its allies, during the occupation of Crimea during World War II.

Novosti news agency quoted Konstantinov as saying today: “According to archival data, many valuable museum holdings were destroyed and looted during the years of the Nazi occupation of Crimea, including the treasures of the Alupka Palace Museum.”He  stressed the need for the German authorities to return the looted items, as there were 25 museums in Crimea. Before the war, all of them were looted and destroyed.

He explained that the Nazis and their partners looted or destroyed more than a million rare antiques in the Soviet Union.

Hanan Shamout