The staff of the Russian embassy in Dushanbe visited the 110-year-old Tajik veteran and conveyed to him the congratulations of Russian President Vladimir Putin on the occasion of the 80th anniversary of the victory in the Battle of Stalingrad. This was reported on Monday by the press service of the Russian diplomatic mission.
"Employees of the embassy went to the village of Shambari in the Gissar district, where they visited Rashid Karimov, a 110-year-old participant of the Battle of Stalingrad, and delivered to him a congratulation from Russian President Vladimir Putin on the occasion of the 80th anniversary of the victory in the Battle of Stalingrad," the statement said.
"You, the defenders of Stalingrad, defeated a cruel and merciless enemy and initiated a radical turning point in the course of the war," the Russian leader said in his congratulatory message. The veteran thanked the president of Russia for his attention to the veterans of the Great Patriotic War.
Karimov is the oldest participant of the Great Patriotic War in Tajikistan. He was born on May 9, 1912, in Gissar bey of Bukhara emirate. He participated in the Battle of Stalingrad as a private in an artillery regiment and received shrapnel wounds.
Around 300,000 Tajiks fought on the fronts of the Great Patriotic War; 92,000 of them were killed or went missing. 65 thousand people were awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union, 15 were awarded the Order of Glory of three classes, 55 thousand were awarded orders and medals. The number of veterans of the Great Patriotic War in the country as of 2023 is yet unknown. In 2022 their number was 59 people.
GSV "Russia - Islamic World"
Photo: official website of the President of the Russian Federation
Based on materials from TASS