Monument to Soviet Tank Crews

The Monument to Soviet Tank Crews (Czech: Památník sovětských tankistů) was a World War II memorial located in Prague.

The monument was erected in Kinsky Square (Náměstí Kinských) in the Smíchov district of Prague, and was dedicated on 29 July 1945, by Soviet General Ivan Konev and municipal representatives.

It was built to commemorate the arrival of Konev's 1st Ukrainian Front, namely the Fourth Tank Army led by Lelyushenko, on 9 May 1945, ending the German occupation of Prague.

However, fifteen members of the newly elected parliaments from Civic Forum and Public Against Violence took advantage of their official immunity and painted the tank back to pink on 16 May in protest against Černý's arrest.

[7] After strong vocal objections from Prime Minister Miloš Zeman and Russian Ambassador Vasili Yakovlev, municipal representatives rejected the project.

[8] Its return included the erect middle finger, and the entire piece was placed on a barge on the Vltava river and displayed near the Charles Bridge until 1 July 2012.

The monument in 1961
The monument, depicted on a 1951 USSR stamp
"Pink" Soviet tank "Joseph Stalin" formerly as No. 23 now in Lešany military museum
The Pink Tank by Černý on the Vltava river, 24 June 2011
The Tank on the Vltava, showing the finger
Pink tank hull with a white invasion stripe on Kinsky Square
The fountain Propadliště času on the site of the monument