Acting Russian President Vladimir Putin on January 28 addressed the funeral service in St.Petersburg for General Mikhail Malofeyev, who was killed by rebelson January 19 during a fighting for Grozny, capital of Chechnya.

In his speech at the funeral ceremony held in the Nikolskoye cemetery at the Alexander Nevsky monastery, Putin said: "Today we say farewell to a real Russian general, a general of the Russian army. It has always been so throughout the entire history of our country that it only takes Russia to get weaker for scum of every sort to pop up and try to beat our country, tear it into pieces, and force it to its knees."

"No one has ever succeeded nor will ever succeed in doing so, because simple Russian people have always stood in the way," he said.

Giving "the moral importance to this event, the acting president canceled all his scheduled meetings and events in Moscowto come to St. Petersburg and pay his respects to a general killedin action in the performance of his duty," Putin press secretary Alexei Gromov told journalists.

Putin expressed his condolences to the general's widow and later stood at the coffin together with Defense Minister Igor Sergeyev.

At 3 p.m. Moscow time Malofeyev was buried in the monastery cemetery.

Rector of the cathedral Father Nazari and Archpriest Father Bogdan conducted the service.

After the funeral, Putin and his entourage flew back to Moscow Thursday evening.