US hopes Russia-Poland gathering at Katyn presages bright, peaceful future in East Europe
By APWednesday, April 7, 2010
US welcomes Russia-Poland massacre site observance
WASHINGTON — The United States is welcoming ceremonies in Katyn, Russia, at which top leaders of Poland and Russia are commemorating the killing by Russian soldiers of 22,000 Polish prisoners of war 70 years ago.
A statement by the State Department called the Katyn massacre “a tragic stain on Europe’s past.”
It goes on to say that Wednesday’s commemoration by Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin (POO’-tihn) and his Polish counterpart, Donald Tusk, “is a sign of a much better present and of the hope for an increasingly bright and peaceful future.”
Putin is the first ranking Russian official to join the Poles in honoring the victims. Russia has not recognized the massacre as a war crime.
Tags: Eastern Europe, Europe, North America, Poland, Russia, United States, Vladimir Putin, Washington
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