The subject is the Alyosha Monument, the common local name for the 11-metre (36-foot) statue of a World War II Soviet soldier which stands in the Bulgarian city of Plovdiv as a monument to all Soviet soldiers who died during the fighting in Bulgaria.
[A] In 1962, Eduard Kolmanovsky visited Bulgaria, including in the city of Plovdiv where the Alyosha monument stands, where he learned the story of its origin.
Kolmanovsky later shared his notes with poet Konstantin Vanshenkin, who was inspired by the topic and soon wrote a poem.
He cannot give flowers to the women, who give their flowers to him "Alyosha" was published in 1966 in the Soviet army magazine Sergeant Major/Sergeant (Russian: Старшина-сержант) in the section dedicated to Bulgarian-Soviet friendship.
In the Soviet Union, the song became popular in a duet by the Bulgarian singers Margret Nikolova and Georgi Kordov.