In unveiling an exhibit of artistic "booty" taken as plunder from Germany at the end of World War II, Russia is displaying not only incredible artwork but incredible premeditated insensitivity.
The priceless cache of 63 paintings, hidden for a half-century after Soviet soldiers took it out of Germany, includes major works by El Greco, Goya, Tintoretto, Veronese, Renoir, Degas and Monet.Russian curators claim the exhibit in the Pushkin Museum is legitimate war booty and that the country deserves to keep it as compensation for the destruction of Russian museums and artifacts by the Nazis.
But the fact is that many of the paintings were taken from the collections of Jews who were victims of the war, certainly not aggressors.
The display is titled "Twice Saved," referring to what the Russians see as the rescue of the paintings from the Germans and their restoration by the Russians.
However, the title might better be "Twice Stolen" since many of the works were taken from Jewish collections by the Nazis and then snatched by the Soviet soldiers.
The show was announced without warning to coincide with the 50th anniversary of the Nazi defeat, another unnecessary jab.
Germans are concerned also that the Russian restoration of the paintings and some neglect during 50 years of storage have caused irreversible damage to some.
Germany and Russia are different countries now in a different age. Germany has treaties with both the former Soviet Union and Russian, and international law dictates trophy art must be returned to its owners. Russia should abide by that law and send the art back where it belongs.
Russia's claim that the paintings are due compensation for past offenses is a hollow one. Old hostilities should be put where they belong - in the past.