The Russian embassy in South Korea has dismissed Seoul’s concerns about a large banner hanging from its building with the message “Victory will be ours.”

The embassy said Monday that it installed the banner to mark Diplomat’s Day and Defender of the Fatherland Day, which Russia celebrates in February, adding that it is common practice to install promotional materials such as banners on its premises. 

The embassy said the words on the banner are meant to celebrate Russia’s defeat of Nazi Germany in World War II and that the phrase is a familiar one used by the Russian people.

It added that it believes the banner does not hurt anyone’s feelings when the historical context is considered. 

The embassy said it plans to take down the banner after it holds commemorative events. 

The foreign ministry in Seoul had conveyed concerns to the embassy that the banner could raise unnecessary tensions among the South Korean public, or among other countries with diplomatic missions in South Korea, considering the Russia-Ukraine war has been going on for almost four years now.