Russia has said they stand together with their long-term partners while “proudly observing” Bangladesh’s “incredible leap” in socio-economic development.
“We cherish the golden pages of our common history” and appreciate the similar sentiments from the Bangladeshis, said the Russian Embassy in Dhaka Friday, marking 50 years of the Soviet naval operation at Chattogram port.
The seaport’s functioning was disrupted during the Liberation War, and the nascent country was experiencing serious difficulties in receiving humanitarian aid and food.
Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman during his visit to the USSR in early March 1972 held meetings with Leonid Brezhnev, secretary-general of the central committee of the USSR Communist Party, and Defense Minister Marshall Andrey Grechko, requesting the Soviet leadership to send an expedition to the mouth of the River Karnaphuli River to help restore activities at the the port.
On March 21, 1972, a Soviet delegation arrived in Dhaka to work out an agreement.
Under the agreement, the USSR Navy embarked on a special minesweeping operation and clearing of sunk ships under the command of Rear Admiral Sergei Zuenko, with up to 1,000 sailors.
Their equipment included 24 vessels – floating workshops, minesweepers, an escape boat, seagoing tugs, a tanker, an AHTS vessel, a crane barge, a hydrographic sounding vessel, crew and storm boats, mobile diving stations, and a floating warehouse.
Despite the severe working conditions, all the tasks were fully implemented.
From April 1972 to June 1974, the crew members raised 26 ships with a total displacement of about 100 thousand tons, featuring not only new vessels but also those sunk in the 19th century.
However, all crew members could not return home after the mission, according to the Russian Embassy.
On July 13, 1973, Yuri Redkin, a senior sailor of the floating workshop, lost his life in the line of duty.
He was buried with military honours in the territory of the Bangladesh Naval Academy where the Karnaphuli flows into the Bay of Bengal.
The place of his burial is known as “Redkin Point” and is open to visitors.
Also, at Laldighi Park in Chattogram stands a stele dedicated to the heroic feat of the Soviet Navy.
Source: United News of Bangladesh