Two large portraits of the late Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny have been spray-painted on a property owned by the family of a former Czech foreign minister behind a monument to Soviet soldiers in Vienna. The portraits were completed on the wall behind the monument, which was already painted in Ukraine's blue and yellow national colors after Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022. The wall belongs to the Palais Schwarzenberg, owned by the noble family of the former Czech Foreign Minister who passed away in November.
The monument portraying a Soviet soldier was built after Soviet troops took Vienna in 1945. Austria, which was annexed by Nazi Germany in 1938, was divided into occupation zones until the country was granted full sovereignty in 1955.
The Schwarzenberg family foundation representative stated that the monument commemorates victims of dictatorship, and Mr. Navalny is seen as an obvious victim of dictatorship.
Austrian graffiti duo painted the portraits, with one of the artists mentioning that they have received positive feedback so far.
A group close to the Russian Embassy complained that the wall behind the monument to Soviet soldiers is being “misused for political purposes.”
An improvised memorial to Navalny opposite the embassy has been removed twice in the last two weeks. Vienna prosecutors are considering whether to open an investigation into those incidents.
