Ivan Konev statue unveiled in Slovakia’s Valley of Death
Slovak officials, a European Parliament member and Russia’s ambassador attended the Oct. 3 ceremony. Speakers linked the memorial to wartime liberation and the preservation of military monuments.
Slovakia’s Valley of Death now has a statue of Soviet Marshal Ivan Konev. The ceremony highlighted his wartime command while reports also noted his later roles in Hungary and Berlin.
- The statue was unveiled in Kružlová on Oct. 3.
- Slovak officials and Russia’s ambassador attended.
- Slavomír Gibej made the Konev statue.
- Konev commanded the Soviet 1st Ukrainian Front.
- Reports also noted his roles in Hungary and Berlin.
What's new
- The Konev statue was unveiled in the Valley of Death.
- Minister Richard Takáč and Russian Ambassador Sergej Andrejev attended.
- Sculptor Slavomír Gibej created the statue.
A statue of Soviet Marshal Ivan Konev was unveiled on Oct. 3, 2026, in the Valley of Death, in the cadastral area of Kružlová in Slovakia’s Svidník district, at a ceremony attended by Slovak officials, Russia’s ambassador and representatives of an anti-fascist organisation.12
The ceremony
Those present included Slovakia’s Agriculture and Rural Development Minister Richard Takáč, Smer-SD member of the European Parliament Ľuboš Blaha, Russian Ambassador Sergej Andrejev and Jaroslav Demian, chairman of the Slovak Union of Anti-Fascist Fighters. TASS also reported that veterans and members of the public attended.123
Takáč thanked the people involved in the project and delivered a short address. He said the memorial concerned not only Konev but also the many people who died for freedom in the region. He also said monuments were being removed or destroyed in Europe and Slovakia. TASS quoted him as saying: “Marshal Konev made a significant contribution to the liberation of Czechoslovakia.”123
Demian said his organisation regarded paying tribute to Konev at the site as an honour. Andrejev thanked Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico for what the ambassador described as Fico’s initiative, two years earlier, to commemorate Konev in Slovakia.12
Konev’s record
During the Second World War, Konev commanded the Soviet 1st Ukrainian Front, which contributed to the liberation of Slovakia and Czechia. TASS reported that the Red Army began the Carpathian-Dukla Offensive in autumn 1944 and that Konev commanded Soviet forces during the operation. According to TASS, its objective was to cross the fortified Dukla Pass and connect with forces taking part in the anti-Nazi Slovak National Uprising.123
The Slovak reports also described later parts of Konev’s record. He participated in the suppression of the 1956 uprising in Hungary and was involved in the so-called second Berlin crisis, which led to the construction of the Berlin Wall.12
The sculptor and the initiative
Demian identified Slovak sculptor Slavomír Gibej as the maker of the Konev statue. Gibej also created a symbolic memorial to Soviet Marshal Malinovsky in Starý Tekov in western Slovakia. Andrejev credited Fico with starting the effort to commemorate Konev, although the available reports establish that attribution rather than independently documenting the prime minister’s role.123
Why it matters
The unveiling connects remembrance of the 1st Ukrainian Front’s role in liberating Slovakia and Czechia with public discussion about the treatment of military monuments in Europe. The Slovak reports also place Konev’s wartime command alongside his later involvement in Hungary in 1956 and the second Berlin crisis.2
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