5 ways Russia remembers its World War II fallen in other countries

World War II saw a tremendous amount of killing – and Russians took the full brunt of the Nazi death machine. Even the holocaust, a horribly cold, mathematical, and planned destruction of an entire race, was relatively small potatoes compared to the sheer volume of Russian lives lost fighting to end Nazism in Europe..

The Soviet Union lost some 26 million people fighting for their lives. There was hardly a Soviet family left untouched by what it calls "The Great Patriotic War." So it makes sense that Russia would want to honor its fallen, wherever they fell. And no one does monuments like Communists.

Budapest, Hungary

The Soviet War Memorial in the Hungarian capital sits just across the street from the U.S. Embassy and is ironically flanked by a statue of Ronald Reagan. The statue itself bears the names of the Red Army fighters who assisted in the end of Nazi occupation of Budapest from across the Danube.

The statue is maintained by the local government in Hungary as part of a deal to preserve World War II memorials in both countries. Locals like to joke that when the Soviets left Hungary, they gave the Hungarians a giant middle finger.

Heroes Monument to the Red Army – Vienna, Austria

An incredible 17,000 Red Army soldiers died in the Vienna Offensive of World War II. The fight for Hitler's hometown was brutal and costly. To commemorate their sacrifice, the Soviet Union built a 3,000-square-foot monument near Schwarzenberg Castle. Vienna still pays to maintain the upkeep on the memorial, centered by a Red Army soldier wearing a golden helmet and carrying a Soviet flag.

Brest Hero Fortress – Brest, Belarus

What was once a Tsarist Russian fortress was used by the Nazis in World War II as a defensive position, the Brest-Litovsk Fortress is now called the Brest Hero-Fortress and pays homage to the Hero City of Brest and its contributions to the Great Patriotic War. During the early days of Operation Barbarossa, the Nazi invasion of the USSR, the Soviets were almost able to repel tens of thousands of Nazi troops from the walls of the fort. Standing tall among the ruins is a stone giant, called "Courage" which dominates the ruins.

Slavin Memorial Complex – Bratislava, Slovakia

In the capital city of Slovakia, once dominated by the Soviet Union, a memorial still stands honoring the men and women who died to liberate Bratislava from the horrors of Nazi occupation. The Slavin is actually a memorial complex instead of a lone memorial. Some 7,000 Soviet soldiers are buried here, and their names adorn the walls of the complex.

From the top of Slavin Hill, visitors can view the site that honors the men who died there while taking in amazing views of the entire city.

Soviet War Memorial – Treptower Park, Berlin

This massive figure was unveiled in 1949, just after the end of the Berlin Airlift. Built in Berlin's Treptower Park, the statue memorializes 80,000 Red Army soldiers who died in the battle for Berlin in 1945. On top of a manicured landscape stands a lone Soviet soldier, standing on what's left of a broken swastika. The grounds carry the remains of thousands of Soviet soldiers who died fighting in the city.

To this day, the memorials, like the other two honoring the Soviet sacrifice to triumph over Nazi Germany in Berlin, are meticulously maintained by the German government.