By Mr. Evgeny Tomikhin, Ambassador of the Russian Federation to the Kingdom of Thailand
This year on May 9, millions of people in the countries of former Soviet Union commemorate the 80th anniversary of the Victory in the Great Patriotic war.
The Great Patriotic war started on June 22, 1941 with Nazi Germany sudden undeclared attack on the Soviet Union. This day remains one the most tragic in the history of humankind. Yet as time goes by fewer participants and survivors of the war remain alive and the recollections of the world’s darkest hours inevitably fade away. Collective memory among people across different nations – once unanimously reinforced by shared hardships of the war – gradually wanes.
Nowadays we often see many politicians and public figures following their distorted logic or vicious desires either downplay or remain silent about the horrific crimes committed against the peoples of the USSR during the Great Patriotic War.
Some attribute the suffering of millions to just one country or a single nation. These actions are compounded by attempts to alter the historical truth about World War II and undermine the immense sacrifices made by the Soviet people to achieve Victory over fascism.
In these strange times of fake news and “post-truth” when doubt blurs the boundaries between verity and falsehood it is worth reminding ourselves key facts about the victory in the Great Patriotic war and World War II in general and deliberate on its meaning today.
The fascist coalition in Europe was defeated by joint efforts of the allied forces including of the Soviet Union, the United States, the UK, patriotic forces in France and other countries. However, the contribution of each of these countries to achieving the victory was by no means even. Only after the intense battles near Moscow, in Stalingrad, Kursk and other Soviet cities Nazi army and its collaborators suffered major defeats and had to eventually retreat.
Gradually and with severe casualties the accomplishments of the Soviet Red army dispelled the invincibility myth of the Hitler forces, broke their morale and laid the foundation for a complete turnaround in the war. Nearly 70% of Nazi losses throughout the entire course of the World War II occurred in fierce battles with the Soviet soldiers.
Amid 62 nations that participated in the World War II the USSR took the heaviest blow and lost more than 26 million human lives. Hundreds of cities, towns, villages, factories, mines, countless kilometers of railways and overall national wealth of inestimable value were lost in warfare. The astounding figures remind us all of the hefty price everyone had to pay for the sake of lasting peace.
There is no family in today’s Russia, Belarus, Ukraine, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Armenia and other countries of the former USSR that is unaffected by the events of the war. Many had at least one grandfather that engaged the enemy in the trenches on the battlefield. Even more had family members that served “on the home front” – working long hours at the armories to secure uninterrupted flow of ammunition and supplies for the army.
Some had a relative that had to endure all the pain and suffering associated with a concentration or labor camp. 80 years since the end of the Great Patriotic war its echo unites people across nations and haunts many descendants of the victorious generation.
For people of former Soviet countries including diplomats and their families that work here in Bangkok May 9 is a sacred day to recall historic and heroic events of the past, to visit victory monuments and cemeteries and to lay flowers and wreaths.
In Russia millions of people congregate in downtowns of their respective cities holding portraits of their grandparents, parents and other relatives to march in a campaign known as the “Immortal Regiment”.
On this day national TV channels broadcast movies about the war as well as concerts featuring war songs performed by singers of different age and genre including today’s youth. The experience of war, its role in the history of the world and life-changing impact on an ordinary person are reflected in countless books, paintings, plays and many other forms of cultural expression. Many of such works gained immortal recognition like Vasily Grossman’s «Life and Fate», Boris Vasilyev’s «The Dawns Here Are Quiet» or Konstantin Simonov’s «Wait for Me».
The hard-won Victory in the Great Patriotic war serves as a reminder to extol virtues of all peoples of the former Soviet Union that gave everything they could: blood, courage, perseverance, strength, and often their own life for the sake of peace.
The anniversary of Victory is also a very sorrowful occasion to recall all the sacrifices every family had to make, all the lost lives on the battlefields, in concentration camps and occupied territories. Let us keep the memory and not forget the date – 9 May 1945 – when 80 years ago an ordinary Soviet Solder became victorious in the most violent war in human history.
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