Day of Remembrance and Reconciliation

On this day, May 8, Ukraine commemorates the victims of the Second World War of 1939-1945 and the victory over Nazism.

"We are returning to our country an honest history without ideological impurities. It is on May 8 that most of the world's nations remember the greatness of the victory over Nazism. It is on May 8 that the world honors the memory of all those whose lives were taken by that war. It was on May 8 that the Act on the Unconditional Surrender of the Wehrmacht came into force," President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said in his speech.

By introducing this memorable date, Ukraine sought to join the European tradition of celebrating the victory in World War II, honoring all those who fought against Nazism and the victims of the war. It also wanted to recall that the war began as a result of agreements between two totalitarian regimes: the National Socialist (Nazi) in Germany and the Communist in the USSR. Between 1939 and 1945, both totalitarian regimes committed numerous crimes against humanity, war crimes, and genocide on Ukrainian soil, resulting in enormous losses for the Ukrainian, Jewish, Crimean Tatar, and other peoples living within the territory of modern Ukraine.

We remember with gratitude the significant contribution to the victory that Ukrainians made on the side of the anti-Hitler coalition. Glory to the heroes who gave us peaceful life after World War II and to those who are now fighting for a free Ukraine!