On the occasion of the International Holocaust Remembrance Day, President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy took part in the opening of the “Look into the Past” installation in Kyiv.
The Ukrainian President stressed that the Holocaust Remembrance Day is important both for the history of our country, which lived through the tragedy of Babyn Yar during the Nazi occupation, and for the whole world.
"Today, we honor all the victims of the Holocaust, the victims of the Babyn Yar tragedy, all the victims of the Shoah," Volodymyr Zelenskyy said.
He noted that on this day in 1945, soldiers of the 1st Ukrainian Front began the liberation of the Auschwitz concentration camp.
"That is why today we honor those who saved the lives of many Jews. They have become and hold such a high title - the title of the Righteous Among the Nations," the President said.
According to the Head of State, the installation opened today on Victory Avenue in the capital is important because it gives an opportunity to look into the terrible past, which we have no right to forget.
"We must remember that it is simply impossible not to notice the dictatorship, not to notice Nazism, not to notice such an attitude to humanity, to the people, to the traditions. That's why we remember and notice. Eternal memory to all victims of the Holocaust," Volodymyr Zelenskyy stressed.
In his video address, Israeli President Reuven Rivlin thanked the President of Ukraine and the Chairman of the Supervisory Board of the Babyn Yar Holocaust Memorial Center Natan Sharansky for their contribution to the commemoration of the Holocaust tragedy.
He noted that never in the history of Europe has there been such a large-scale and brutal operation to exterminate Jews in such a short time as in Babyn Yar. The President of Israel stressed that these tragic events should not be forgotten and ignored.
"I would like to thank everyone who stands guard over remembrance and does everything possible to avoid forgetting this page of history. May the memory of our brothers and sisters who died in Babyn Yar and other sites of mass extermination remain forever in our hearts," Reuven Rivlin noted.
Natan Sharansky emphasized in his video address that the Nazis killed 6 million Jews, 1.5 million of them in Ukraine, including in Babyn Yar. At the same time, according to him, the Soviet authorities tried to conceal these crimes.
"Therefore, we are grateful to independent Ukraine for restoring the remembrance of the Holocaust and preserving it for future generations," he said.
Natan Sharansky thanked Volodymyr Zelenskyy for his help and efforts to establish a museum and research center of the history of the Holocaust in Eastern Europe.
"This project is important for us. Together we will study our past to build the future together,” the Chairman of the Supervisory Board of the Babyn Yar Holocaust Memorial Center stressed.
