The head of the Israeli Foreign Ministry told the Russian leader that he wanted to personally thank him for the release of Auschwitz by the Red Army.
“I would like to thank that the Red Army liberated the Auschwitz concentration camp and helped defeat Nazi Germany,” Katz said.
The diplomat said that his mother - one of the prisoners of the concentration camp - was released by the Red Army.
It is expected that during the visit, Putin will take part in the Holocaust Forum and in the unveiling ceremony of the monument to the defenders and residents of besieged Leningrad.
Initially, the trip was supposed to last two days, but was reduced to one in connection with the situation with the Russian government.