Rustam Minnikhanov lays flowers at the monument to Soviet pilots in the Chinese city of Changchun

On April 11, during his working visit to China, the Rais (Head) of Tatarstan Rustam Minnikhanov laid flowers at the monument to Soviet pilots in the Chinese city of Changchun.

From 1932 to 1945, Changchun was occupied by Japan and called Xinjing. In August 1945, airborne assault force of the Trans-Baikal Front consisting of eleven people landed there, and the next day the units of the sixth Guards Tank Army entered the city. Thus the city was liberated from years of occupation.

The names of 23 Soviet pilots are carved on two sides of the monument. In 1961, the monument was inscribed into the list of sites of cultural heritage of Jilin Province.