Authorities in Vologda Oblast are planning to install a statue of Joseph Stalin on the grounds of the Vologda Political Exile museum, Governor Georgy Filimonov announced on October 11.
According to Georgy Filimonov, the decision was "motivated by citizens’ appeals; there is public demand." The monument is currently in its final stages of production.
"Although we understand the mixed perception of this figure, we must acknowledge his great achievements, know and respect our country’s history, and take pride in it, because history is a single and indivisible chain of interconnected links within the historical process," Filimonov said.
The Vologda Political Exile museum’s exhibition is centered around the room where Stalin lived during his exile in 1911-1912. It currently features a wax figure of him.
Filimonov also revealed plans to open a monument to Ivan the Terrible, noting that the tsar’s figure is "intrinsically linked to Vologda." A miniature version is displayed in his office.
Georgy Filimonov is known for his admiration of Joseph Stalin. His office features a painting of Stalin shaking his hand, and in his reception area, there are portraits of Stalin, Dzerzhinsky, Lenin, Putin, and Saint George.