This year, due to the pandemic, there were no public gatherings in front of the red square. The military parade was viewed online.
Our contributor from Moscow, Dr. Roland Bitzhamov spoke about the history of this occasion and explained the role of the Assyrians in that war.
Mr. Bitzhamov says in the 1940s, the Assyrian population in the former Soviet Union was about twenty thousand, living in different Soviet Republics.
There were more than two thousand soldiers in the Soviet forces. Two of them received the award of the Hero of the Soviet Union. This is the highest honour a soldier can have.
In proportion to population, Assyrians came second in Russia to have the medal as per the population. Compared to other nationalities in the Soviet Union. This means for every ten thousand people, there is one person who is a Hero of the Soviet Union. One nation came first and that was Ossetians.
One of the two heroes was an Assyrian from Armenia, Sergei Sarkhoshov (1913-1991). He had the rank of lieutenant.
The second Hero of the Soviet Union was Lado Davydov, born in Ossetia in 1924 and died in Moscow in 1987.
Assyrians had three army Generals during the Soviet era. General Alexander Tamrasov and his brother Andre Tamrazo.
Another high-ranking officer was Georgi Ilyich Sarkisov, Born in Tbilisi-Georgia 1932 and died in 1977. He was Major General of engineering and technical service. He served in the Ukrainian Armed Forces for decades. He received many medals of honour from the Soviet Union.
Lieutenant Sergei Sarhoshev Source: wikipedia.jpg
Lado Davydov 1924-1987 Source: NiNa.Az
General Alexander Tamrasov Source: Russian achives
General Georgy Ilyich Sarkisov Source: 1418museum.ru
Four Giants
In 1972, the late Professor Konstantin Matveev organised a ceremony in the Assyrian village of URMIA in Krasnodar, south of Russia, and all those Generals were invited and attended the ceremony. They were all proud Assyrians. Their pictures are still hanging on the wall of fame at the centre of the village.
Assyrians from the Soviet Union era gave many martyrs and many became POWs, others came back with injuries and disabilities as a result of the war.
From left: Sergey Sarkhoshev, Nikolay Tamrazov and Lado Davidov Source: Hagyana Atouraya.jpg
There are hundreds of photos and biographies of other Assyrian soldiers and officers of the Soviet army who fought alongside their brothers to defeat the German Nazis. You can search for them from different resources. But Assyrians in the former Soviet Union, are always proud to be part of that victory.
May they rest in Peace
