Thousands at demonstrations for Ukraine
Pro-Russian motorcades roll through Cologne
5/9/2022 4:56 am
On the 77th anniversary of the liberation from National Socialism, hundreds of people drive through Cologne, waving the Russian flag and expressing their support for Russia. At the same time, far more participants are coming to the counter-demonstrations – and showing their solidarity with Ukraine.
The Ukraine war brought thousands of people onto the streets in Cologne on Sunday for very different reasons. In the morning there was a motorcycle parade through the outskirts of the cathedral city, in which, according to the police, around 150 people expressed their support for Russia. Later, around 1,000 people gathered in several hundred vehicles at Fühlinger See for a motorcade – among them were many supporters of the Russian head of state Vladimir Putin.
Elena Kolbasnikova organized the motorcade and claimed to the “Bild” newspaper that Ukraine “has been waging a war against the peaceful population of Donbass since 2014”. Similar to the propaganda spread by the Kremlin, it accused Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy of being “controlled by the Nazis”.
In the late afternoon, a pro-Ukraine demonstration took place at the Deutz shipyard, to which 10,000 people had registered. Because around 50 people with Ukraine flags had positioned themselves at one point on the planned route, the route was rerouted. The police wanted to avoid a meeting of the different groups. According to the police, there were no unusual incidents on the journey, which was accompanied by a large number of police cars.
Motorcades also in Saarland
Participants had flags of Russia and the Soviet Union on the hood or passengers held them out of the window. On stickers and banners, they demanded that German arms deliveries to Ukraine be stopped. There were small groups of counter-demonstrators on the side of the road, and loud exchanges broke out as they drove past. “So far we have no evidence of major clashes or riots,” said a police spokeswoman.
A participant in the motorcade had her picture taken with a Soviet flag.
(Photo: picture alliance/dpa)
Before the start of the meeting, officials briefly detained a 49-year-old man who wanted to advance to the opening rally with a Ukrainian flag, the police said. In the evening, the police added that the emergency services briefly stopped the car parade in the afternoon “in order to draw attention to compliance with the requirements again with a view to road safety”.
In Saarland, too, around 300 people took part in a pro-Russian motorcade from Zweibrücken to Saarbrücken. Around 85 vehicles were involved, the police said. The end was in the parking lot of the main cemetery in Saarbrücken. The demonstration was peaceful. Several participants had attached flags to their cars that violated the conditions, including the Soviet one. Upon request, these were removed. It will be checked whether criminal or administrative offense proceedings will be initiated.