Copenhagen's beloved Little Mermaid statue was vandalized with Russian flag graffiti

• The Little Mermaid statue in Copenhagen has been vandalized with the colors of the Russian flag.

• Police said they are investigating and have made no arrests as of Friday.

• The famed sculpture was also graffitied last year with symbols that appeared to oppose Russia's war.

Denmark's beloved sculpture of the Little Mermaid has been daubed with the colors of the Russian flag, according to Copenhagen Police, almost a year after it was defaced with anti-Russian war messaging.

Police said they were alerted to the graffiti on Thursday morning. Three broad stripes in white, blue and red were smeared across the rock on which the statue sits, according to police, who say they are treating the incident as an act of vandalism. No arrests have been made.

The bronze sculpture, of the beloved character from Hans Christian Andersen's fairy tale, is considered an icon of the city and is a popular highlight with tourists. It was first unveiled in 1913, and since then has been the victim of several incidents of vandalism.

Last year the same rock was scrawled with the message "Z=[swastika]," as Danish newspaper CPH Post reported. The letter 'Z' is used as a pro-war symbol by Russian armed forces and their supporters.

That instance came just a couple of weeks after Russia launched its February 2022 invasion of Ukraine. Denmark has been a firm supporter of Ukraine in the war.

In that instance, police considered the vandalism to be politically motivated, TV2 Kosmopol reported at the time.

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