Русия: Британски ветеран от втората световна война посети Крим

Three veterans of WWII Arctic convoys from the UK arrived in Sevastopol, Tuesday, for a week-long visit to the Black Sea peninsula, despite a warning of the UK Foreign Office. During their visit, the veterans are scheduled to meet Sevastopol's governor Sergei Menaylo and visit a number of WWII and Crimean War memorials. The travellers will also visit Simferopol's Livadia Palace, where the famous Yalta Conference took place in 1945, and will meet Russian veterans. Initially, six veterans were set to visit Crimea but cancelled their trip due to the warning. The Arctic convoys of World War II were oceangoing convoys that sailed from the United Kingdom, Iceland and North America to northern ports in the Soviet Union, primarily Arkhangelsk and Murmansk, to deliver essential supplies. 78 convoys completed the journey between August 1941 and May 1945 having transported 4 million tonnes of supplies, including 7,000 aircraft and 5,000 tanks. Thousands of sailors died in combat with Nazi ships. All 3,300 veterans of the convoys were awarded the Ushakov medal by Vladimir Putin in 2012.