Washington DC Council Member Marion Barry Pushes Bill to 'Annex' Parts of City to Russia (SAT PAR News Jun 3, 2014) Marion Barry who holds the Ward 8 City Council seat in Washington DC has gained support for the lease of certain monuments to Russia. The Office of Historical Monuments and Culture located in Moscow next to the Parliament would pay $15 million dollars for a 5 year lease on monuments related to the Soviet Union. Other members of the council usually support such types of cultural leasing to promote travel and events. This proved to be more difficult as some of the monuments are located inside buildings, some federal and some city domain. The resolution was to allow sole visitation during certain hours, giving a temporary ownership in the spirit of the lease. Some on the council called such leasing a form of annexing, but Council Member Barry refuted that they do this every year with other countries and grandstanding over some foreign difficulties with Russia was not helpful.