Medvedev rejects WWII history 'rewrites'

SINGAPORE, Nov. 16 (UPI) -- Russian President Dmitry Medvedev told sailors in Singapore Monday that perceived attempts to rewrite the history of World War II should be rejected.

Medvedev told the crew of the Russian cruiser Varyag that historians will always debate the past; however, there was no doubt that the eventual outcome of the war had been agreed upon by the allied powers at the time.

"We should keep an eye on such things -- not fighting different points of view, but protecting our interests and thwarting falsifications of history that could hamper the interests of the state," the Russian president said.

Russia's RIA Novosti news agency said Monday that the president's remarks referred to resentment over the Soviet Union's occupation of neighboring nations after the Red Army rolled into Germany.

On a practical note, Medvedev told the sailors that if the "falsifiers" are given too much legitimacy, Russia could find itself facing demands for compensation from its previously occupied neighbors.

Medvedev was in Singapore for the APEC summit.