On the eve of the 70th anniversary of Joseph Stalin's death, feelings about the wartime leader of the Soviet Union remain mixed in the countries he once ruled with an iron fist.
During his three decades of dictatorship, Stalin oversaw rapid industrialization and victory over the Nazis, but also the death of millions of people in persecutions, gulags, and starvation.
At the moment of Russia's conflict with Ukraine, which the Kremlin claims is a new existential battle for national survival, memories of the Soviet dictator are increasingly present, writes Reuters.
"First, thank him for the victory (in World War II)," said 21-year-old Madina, expressing the typically mixed feelings about Stalin's legacy that most people on the streets of Moscow have.
"Secondly, he is a negative person for me because of the great suffering of people. Lots of executions, murders, persecutions, art bans and the like. Therefore, it is impossible to have a clear position," she added to Reuters, declining to give her full name.
Stalin died on March 5, at the age of 74.
Although public commemorations remain largely a taboo topic and streets no longer bear his name, his reputation has seen a revival of sorts in recent years, Reuters points out.
A survey by the Russian Levada Center from 2021 showed that 45 percent of people express "respect" for Stalin, while 48 percent support erecting a monument in his honor.
"Why should I have a bad attitude towards him?" said 31-year-old Moscow resident Andrei, praising Stalin as a strong personality whose war victory should be celebrated.
Russian President Vladimir Putin, who presents himself as the heir to the tsars of the past, praised Stalin as a wartime leader but condemned his domestic policies as "totalitarian".
Since the beginning of the conflict in Ukraine, the Kremlin - which claims to be fighting Ukrainian "neo-Nazis" - has been trying to take up Stalin's mantle of war, portraying its campaign as putting an end to the unfinished business of World War II.
In February, Putin visited Volgograd - once known as Stalingrad - to mark the 80th anniversary of the war's turning point.
"Unfortunately, we are witnessing that the Nazi ideology in its modern form and manifestation is once again directly threatening the security of our country," he said.
Ukraine claims that Putin exhibits the same "genocidal" brutality as Stalin.
In Stalin's hometown of Gori, Georgia, many have a positive attitude toward the Soviet leader, even though their country is independent from Russia with widespread support for Ukraine.
"The majority in Gori appreciates Stalin. As a historical figure, he is a great man and a person who ruled with an iron fist," resident Jakob Kikriashvili, 48, told Reuters.
"However, the attitude towards him is changing. The younger generation is more aggressive towards him," he added.
Born Yosif Dzhugashvili to a modest family in 1878, the young Stalin spent his childhood in Gori before going to study in nearby Tbilisi. Today, the Stalin Museum is the most famous tourist attraction in Gori.
In 2010, the Georgian government ordered the removal of a statue of Stalin in the sluggish city, arguing that it did not deserve it.
Cotne Gogijašvili, a resident of Gori in his early twenties, said that although older people in the city still "worship" Stalin, the younger generations do not think so. "Most young people don't like him, and I think that's good."
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