Russian and British Veterans of the Arctic Convoys Celebrated the Unveiling of Russian Masts on HMS Belfast in London

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Oct 22, 2010, 08:53 ET

LONDON, October 22, 2010 /PRNewswire/ -- Tuesday 19 October 2010 became significant and a memorable day for Russia and Britain, when the grand unveiling of the new Russian masts on the legendary HMS Belfast in London took place in the presence of HRH Prince Philip The Duke of Edinburgh and the Head of the Russian presidential administration Sergey Naryshkin. Russian veterans of the Arctic convoys from Archangel, Yuri Kopytov and George Evtukov, supported Petropavlovsk Group (http://www.petropavlovsk.net) and VTB Capital (http://www.vtbcapital.ru), took part in the ceremony. Masts were manufactured at the "Severnaya Verf" shipyard in St. Petersburg, Russia.

In his speech, Mr. Naryshkin stressed the need for bilateral support of traditions and historical relations between Russia and Britain, and the importance of preserving historical values for future generations.

Prince Philip and Sergey Naryshkin personally welcomed Russian and British veterans and expressed their gratitude to Peter Hambro and Pavel Maslovsky of Petropavlovsk Group and Alexey Yakovitsky of VTB Capital for their continued support of the annual Victory Day celebrations on HMS Belfast, and the organizer of the Victory Day celebrations in London Eugene Kasevin.

Event Photo Gallery: http://www.kifir.info/hmsb/

The masts restoration project was supported by Russian companies United Industrial Corporation (http://eng.opk.ru), Severstal ( http://www.severstal.com) and Sovcomflot (http://www.sovcomflot.ru), in recognition of the heroism of the Arctic Convoys 1941-1945. HMS Belfast, which stands on the River Thames in London, is "the last witness" and the only remaining warship that escorted convoys during the Second World War.

The Head of the annual Victory Day celebrations in London and Chairman of Russia's Finance & Investments Market Players Club, Eugene Kasevin, who was accompanying Russian veterans on their trip to London, said that "this restoration project of HMS Belfast masts is a fine example of Russian generosity and respect for the historical friendship between Russia and Britain."

Alexandre Bykov (PR Newswire) stated: This great event will help to boost positive developments in building closer relations between two countries.

Victory Day London: http://www.victorydaylondon.co.uk

Club KIFIR: http://www.kifir.info

HMS Belfast: http://hmsbelfast.iwm.org.uk

SOURCE KIFIR