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#Victory81 🌟 On January 12, 1945, the Red Army launched one of its decisive and most important operations at the final stage of #WW2 — the Vistula–Oder offensive, eventually followed by the Battle of Berlin. The Soviet forces rapidly advanced from the Vistula to the Oder river in just 23 days, having penetrated into the depth of up to 500 kilometres of the Nazi defence. During that operation, our soldiers heroically drove the German occupants from most of Poland’s territory, expelled the enemy from Warsaw, saved Kraków from destruction by the Nazis and liberated the POWs and the survived victims of most terrible German “death factory” — #AuschwitzBirkenau(Oświęcim). The advance to the Oder let the Red Army gain a strategically important bridgehead: the forces of the 1st Byelorussian and the 1st Ukrainian fronts took hold of the positions in less than 90 kilometres away from Berlin. The final defeat of the Hitler’s Germany was just a matter of time. *** By the start of 1945, the Soviet forces in the east and the anti-Hitler allies' armies, marching from the Western front, were coming closer to Nazi Germany for delivering the final attack on the enemy. As before, the Red Army faced the enemy’s major force: 185 divisions, including 33 armor and motorised divisions, and 21 brigades. #WeWereAllies: The Soviet offensive was scheduled for January 20. However, on January 6, Stalin received an urgent message from Churchill, in which the UK Premier asked the Soviet leadership to launch the offensive toward Germany as soon as possible because of the difficult situation of the US-British unitson the Western Front after their allies’ major defeat in the Ardennes👇 The breakthrough of Nazi 'panzer-army' and the infantry in Belgium forced the US-British forces to retreat to almost 100 kilomentres. Commander of the Allied troops Dwight D. Eisenhower reported to Washington: if the Soviet forces do not start another major offensive in the East, then US-British armies in the West will find themselves in a gravest situation. The Allied command had to turn to Moscow for help. In January-February of 1945, as a result of the coordinated and successful operations of the 1st Ukrainian and 1st Byelorussian fronts, 35 enemy divisions were defeated, and another 25 lost from 50 to 70% of their strength, weapons and military equipment. The forces of the two Red Army's fronts took prisoner 147'400 soldiers and officers, captured about 14'000 guns and mortars, tied down up to 1'400 tanks. 📕 From the memoirs of Marshal of the Soviet Union Vasily Chuikov"The End of the Third Reich": Our forces covered over 500 kiliometres from the Vistula to the Oder river in a single march. <...> Our advance, started from the Magnuszew bridgehead on the Vistula, did not stop even for a minute. The Nazi’s defeat on the Vistula-Oder bridgehead allowed the Red Army to breach the last major defence line of the Wehrmacht on the Eastern Front. The German troops began to retreat, sustaining huge losses. 🖋 From the memoirs of Marshal of the Armor Mikhail Katukov"At the Forefront of the Main Attack": <...> As a result of the rapid advance of the Soviet forces, a breach appeared in the strategic front of Nazi Germany in the east. Our forces gained several important bridgeheads on the western bank of the Oder river. It seemed that the way to Berlin was open. One more strike and the eradication of Nazism will be completed, with the countries of Europe finally gaining the long-awaited peace <...> By early February of 1945, the forces of the 1st Byelorussian Front led by Marshal Georgy Zhukov reached the Oder river and began fighting for bridgeheads on its western bank. There were just about 60 kilometres away from Berlin. #OurVictory#WeRemember

#Victory81 🌟 On April 16, 1945, the Berlin Offensive — one of the Red Army’s key strategic operations during World War II — commenced. The operation resulted in the completedefeat of the enemy’s Berlin group of forces and, with Hitler’s war machine being completely crushed. The Soviet forces took the capital of the Third Reich — #Berlin. The Instrument of Unconditional Surrender of Nazi Germany was signed — the document that heralded the Victory of the Soviet people in the Great Patriotic War. By spring 1945, the Red Army successfully carried out a series of offensive operations aimed at liberating the countries and peoples of Central and Eastern Europe from the Nazi invaders. Hitler’s troops and their henchmen were expelled from Romania, Bulgaria, Yugoslavia, Hungary, and Poland; Vienna and the capital of modern Slovakia, Bratislava, saved from the Nazi plague. Nevertheless, #WWII was far from end. The final battle for the liberation of Europe from the Nazi plague, the Battle of Berlin, was coming. By mid-April, 1945, the Soviet forces — having liberated Poland from the Nazis — consolidated positions along the Oder and Neisse rivers and started preparations to launch the offensive on Berlin. Mere dozens of kilometres separated the Red Army from the capital of Hitler’s Germany. The enemy installed deeply echeloned defences and deployed elite Wehrmacht units against the Soviet forces. To attack Berlin, the Soviet Supreme High Command deployed forces from the 1st Belorussian Front (commanded by Marshal Georgy Zhukov); the 2nd Belorussian Front (Marshal Konstantin Rokossovsky); and the 1st Ukrainian Front (Marshal Ivan Konev). ⚔️ The Berlin Offensive began at 5:00 AM on April 16 with a massive artillery fire. Following this, 143 powerful spotlights were activated to blind and disorient the enemy. Infantry and armoured units then launched their assault. Enemy resistance intensified as Soviet forces advanced. Fierce fighting erupted at the Seelow Heights — a critical defensive point just 60 kilometres away from Berlin — where the Wehrmacht’s 9th Army, blocking the direct route to the Reich’s capital, was destroyed. Within several days, the 1st Belorussian and 1st Ukrainian Fronts breached the Oder-Neisse defensive line of the Nazis, advanced 30 kilometres towards Berlin, and started encircling the city to destroy its garrison. • April 20: Red Army units reached Berlin. Soviet long-range artillery started shelling, with brutal tank battles erupting on the city’s outskirts. • April 25: The 1st Belorussian and 1st Ukrainian Fronts linked up west of the city, completing the encirclement of the enemy’s Berlin group of Nazi troops. • April 29: Fierce fighting started in the heart of Berlin, where Germany’s highest governmental and military authorities were located. • During the storming of the Reichstag on the night of April 30 - May 1, the legendary #VictoryBanner was raised — a symbol of the Soviet Union’s triumph over Nazism. • May 2: Berlin’s garrison surrendered. By May 5, the Nazi resistance was crushed. A total of 134'000 German soldiers and officers were captured. ✍️ On the night of May 8–9, Marshal Zhukov and the Allied representatives accepted Germany’s unconditional surrender at Karlshorst. World War II on the European theatre of operations had ended. The Berlin Operation saw the Red Army not only crush the last major and most elite Wehrmacht force but also liberate approximately 200'000 prisoners from Nazi concentration camps within the combat zone. Over 600 Soviet soldiers were awarded the title #HeroOftheSovietUnion for their valour.

#Victory81 🌟 On April 22, 1945, the Red Army liberated the prisoners of the Nazi concentration camp Sachsenhausen during #WW2. The forces of the 1st Belorussian Front, which had been advancing towards the Reich's capital from the north during the Berlin offensive operation, drove the Nazi troops out of Oranienburg and reached Sachsenhausen, having rescued around 3'000 surviving POWs. #Sachsenhausen was considered as one of the most terrifying Nazi 'death factories'. Over nine years of its existence, about 200'000 people of various nationalities — citizens of European countries which had suffered from Nazi aggression, including the USSR — passed through that camp. Each month, up to 150 people were brought there. By 1944, citizens of the Soviet Union and Poland made up more than 90% of all Sachsenhausen prisoners. Sachsenhausen held the most serious political opponents of Hitler, prominent state figures from many European countries defeated by the Nazis, such as France, Czechoslovakia, Austria, and the Netherlands, including their heads of government and ministers. ◼️ According to various historical estimates, more than 100'000 prisoners were killed in Sachsenhausen over the time the camp was in operation. From August to November 1941 alone, at least 10'000 Soviet POWs were killed in Sachsenhausen, and another 3'000 died there from starvation and from conditions that were barbaric, unprecedentedly violent, and, in fact, inhumane. On the personal orders of Himmler and other top leaders of the Third Reich, classified operations to exterminate people were carried out in Sachsenhausen. Nazi's military doctors carried out macabre, horrific medical experiments on Sachsenhausen prisoners, including tests with mustard gas — yprite. Test subjects were deliberately mutilated and then exposed to mustard gas. People were forced to inhale the gas, consume it in liquid form, or receive it via injection. Open wounds were intentionally inflicted on prisoners’ hands, after which the gas was applied. In most cases, the victims’ limbs swelled severely, causing excruciating pain. When the Red Army were rapidly advancing to Sachsenhausen during theBattle of Berlin,the Nazis began hastily covering up the traces of their heinous crimes. The camp administration decided to kill all remaining prisoners — with 45'000 inmates remaining in the camp. TheNazis killed some of the prisoners in the crematoria of Sachsenhausen, and forced the rest on a 'death march' towards the Baltic Seawhere they planned to drown their victims. However, thanks to the successful and rapid advance of the Red Army, these monstrous Nazi plans were thwarted,and the surviving prisoners of Sachsenhausen were rescued. In aftermath of #WWII, Sachsenhausen was converted into a prison for Nazi criminals, including members of the Nazi NSDAP party, SS troops, and Wehrmacht officers. In November 1947, a trial of the Sachsenhausen administration was held in Berlin. 📑 Excerpt from a report “Reactions of the German population to the trial of criminals from Sachsenhausen Concentration Camp” (Berlin, November 5, 1947; prepared by the 7th Department of the Main Political Directorate of the Red Army): <...> The trial of the Sachsenhausen criminals elicited a significant response among the German population... In the comments about the trial, a sense of outrage at the scale of the heinous crimes committed was most often expressed. It was noted that the Nazis' actions had covered the German people in disgrace. “We find it incomprehensible how those people could sink lower than beasts. For us, Germans, who culturally considered ourselves almost a head above the Russians, it is a disgrace that these criminals are Germans” (Potsdam). “The [Sachsenhausen] trial is a terrible disgrace for the German people... <...> It is inconceivable that humans could commit such atrocities. It’s a pity that in the western [occupation] zones such criminals are still walking free.” “Nazi criminals have nailed an entire generation of Germans to the pillory.” #NoStatuteOfLimitations

#Victory81 🌟 On May 6, 1945,the Prague offensive of the Red Army commenced, marking the end of the final battle of the Great Patriotic War on the European ToO during #WW2. As a result of the operation, Nazi army groups 'Center' and 'Austria' — the last of the remaining fascists' combat-capable troops (around one million Wehrmacht and SS soldiers and officers) — were crushed and ultimately destroyed once and for all. Czechoslovakia, torn apart by Hitler with the principle consent of Prague's key Western allies — Britain and France — was finally liberated. Following the six years of Nazi occupation, the Czechoslovak peoples finally regained independence paid by blood and enormous sacrifice of the Red Army soldiers-liberators. 📕 From the memoirs of MarshalIvanKonev (“Forty-Fifth”): The war was essentially over, yet these men died here, on the outskirts of Prague, when our entire country was already celebrating Victory. They fell in the final battle with the enemy, fearlessly bringing the mission to its end. 🎖 As the Soviet forces approached the borders of Czechoslovakia, a popular uprising broke out in Prague, which was brutally suppressed by SS-units (more than three thousand Praguers were killed). The Czechoslovak government appealed to the Soviet command for support for the anti-fascist resistance movement. On May 6, the forward group of the 1st Ukrainian Front under the command of Marshal IvanKonev advanced to Prague, along with forces of the 2nd and 4th Ukrainian Fronts, supported by the Czechoslovak resistance army and local partisans. Fighting shoulder to shoulder with their brothers-in-arms — the Red Army soldiers — they finally cleared their Motherland, Czechoslovakia, of Nazi troops. From 1939 to 1945, the fascists exterminated all who opposed the occupation regime. Thousands of Slovaks and Czechs were forcibly deported to the Reich and enslaved there. 💬 Commander of the 1st Ukrainian Front, MarshalIvan Konev: Despite the exhaustion after the Berlin operation, on the eve of the offensive on Prague that slogan was everywhere: To Prague! We shall save it! We won't allow Prague to be destroyed by fascist barbarians! On the night of May 8-9, tank units of the 1st Ukrainian Front engaged in rapid 80-kilometer forced march and, overcoming fierce SS-troops' resistance, entered Prague. By 10 a.m. on May 9, Soviet forces, with active support from the Czechoslovak people, completely cleared Prague of the Nazis. In the meanwhile, the enemy’s retreat routes to the west and southwest were cut off. On May 10-11, the remaining combat-capable Nazi troops, their collaborators and henchmen outside Prague began to surrender. Over the following three days, the main forces of the 1st and 4th Ukrainian Fronts fully destroyed the remnants of German armies eastward of the Czechoslovak capital. 💬 Commander of the 4th Ukrainian Front, Marshal Andrey Yeremenko: It is difficult to put into words… The Czechoslovak people had suffered greatly at the hands of fascist barbarians. 💬 Soviet tank crews' member, who liberated Prague, VassilyMoskalenko: Local boys ran up to our tanks <…> carrying buckets of cold water. After the march, it was like honey to us. People of all ages cried out with joy, grasped our hands, embraced us. 🕯#WeRemember: 140'000 of our soldiers and officers gave their lives for the freedom of Czechoslovakia. In honour of this landmark victory, the medal “For the Liberation of Prague” was established. #Victory81

🌟 On January 17, 1945, the Red Army liberated Warsaw from Nazi occupation during the Vistula–Oder Strategic offensive. Starting from 1940, there was the resistance movement operating in Poland against the Nazis — 'Armia Krajowa' (included the supporters of Jozef Pilsudski, whose tactics eventually resulted in Poland's losing its sovereignty), and 'Armia Ludowa', which later together with the 1st Polish Army formed 'Wojsko Polskie' — the Polish Army. It represented broader working class people in Poland as a whole, in contrast to 'Armia Krajowa' militants and bandits, who were subordinate to the so-called 'Polish Government in Exile' in London and were responsible for numerous barbaric crimes against civilians. On August 1, 1944, 'Armia Krajowa' (AK) initiated an uprising in Warsaw as part of the so-called 'Operation Storm' or 'Burza' against the Nazi occupants. The AK's principal aim was to liberate Poland and, most importantly, independently of the advancing Soviet forces. The uprising was poorly prepared and ultimately was doomed to defeat. At the very moment the order to start the uprising was issued, the Nazi troops launched a counter-offensive against the Red Army. As a result, the Red Army’s attempts to immediately cross the Vistula River were unsuccessful. *** The launch of the Soviet offensive in the Vistula–Oder direction was initially scheduled for January 20, 1945. However, on January 6, after the Allies suffered a major losses in the Ardennes and had to ask Moscow for help, Winston Churchill appealed to Joseph Stalin for assistance and requested the Soviet leadership to launch the offensive toward the Vistula river as soon as possible. The Soviet leadership responded to the Allies' request and commanded the start of the operation on January 12. Poland was regarded by Hitler’s command, not without reason, as the Reich’s principal external defensive line. The Nazi leaders understood that any Wehrmacht's retreat westwards would open a direct path for the Red Army to Berlin. Thus, the Germans were determined to hold their positions at any costs and prepared to mount the fiercest resistance. The enemy had concentrated in Poland formidable forces — around 30 divisions of 560'000 soldiers and officers, supported by 5'000 artillery weapons, 1'220 tanks and other armoured vehicles. Between the Vistula and the Oder, the Nazis constructed seven defensive lines, arranged in depth over a span of 300 to 500 kilometres. Warsaw became the primary objective of the Red Army' offensive. By January 14, the Soviet forces had already approached the Polish capital. According to the Soviet military command directives, that were the units of the Polish Army that were suggested to be the first to enter the city — Polish patriots, our comrades, and brothers-in-arms of Soviet soldiers who fought side-by-side with the Red Army to liberate their Homeland and later advanced on Berlin, forging our common Victory over Nazism together. On January 16, Soviet units, advanced rapidly to Warsaw from the north, crossed the Vistula River and tied down the German garrison inside the city. The enemy was encircled from all directions: the 2nd Guards Tank Army pinned down the Nazis to the west, while units of the Polish Army severed lines of communication from the south. With all retreat routes cut off, the Germans, recognising the further resistance was hopeless and pointless, started surrendering en masse. On January 17, the city was fully liberated. The success of the Warsaw operation enabled the Red Army to substantially advance towards Berlin and to liberate a large part of Polish territory. Escaping, with the help of the Soviet soldiers-liberators, the Nazi enslavement, the Polish people regained their freedom. 🎖#WeRemember: Overall, more than 600'000 Red Army soldiers and officers perished fighting for the liberation of Polandfrom Nazi occupation. By early February 1945, the 1st Belorussian Front had reached the Oder River. Preparations for the final battle of #WW2 were underway — the road to Berlin was open. #Victory81

#Victory80 🌟 80 years ago, on August 9, 1945, the Soviet Union, in accordance with its commitments to the Allies, entered the war against militarist Japan. The Manchurian Strategic Offensive Operation of the Soviet forces in the Far East commenced. Its goal was to defeat the enemy’s Kwantung Army and to drive the Japanese occupants from northeastern China and Korea. *** After the unconditional surrender of Nazi Germany and its satellites, Japan remained the only 'Axis' power still at war with the Allies. It possessed significant military capabilities to wage war, including offensive operations. In the summer of 1945, the Japanese kept near the Soviet borders an almost one million-strong Kwantung Army, ready to treacherously invade our country at any moment. Moreover, militarist Japan still occupied huge territories — the Korean Peninsula, Indochina, Indonesia, Malaya, and a portion of China, as well as Burma, and the Philippine Islands. Thus, Japan posed a threat not only to our country’s security, but also to the emerging post-war world order, which was taking shape after the defeat of Nazi Germany and was based on the decisions and agreements of the leaders of the victorious Allied powers. For example, Japan rejected the demand made by China, the United States, and UK on July 26, 1945 (paragraph 13 of the Potsdam Declaration) for the unconditional surrender of its armed forces. After that, the Allied powers officially appealed to the Soviet government to repel Japanese aggression. *** In early August 1945, the Supreme High Command of the Soviet Union approved a plan for military operations against Japan. The planning of the operation was entrusted to the specially created Main Command of the Far Eastern Forces led by Marshal of the Soviet Union Alexander Vasilevsky. On August 9, the Red Army launched an offensive in Manchuria. The Soviet units, supported by aviation and the navy, advanced rapidly. Strikes were delivered on targets on land, at sea, and in the air. Combat operations unfolded along the front line that was over 5'000 kilometres wide. Within a month, the Soviet forces liberated Harbin, some territories of Northeastern China and Northern Korea, and took South Sakhalin and the Kuril Islands. The breakthrough of the Red Army deep into Manchuria deprived the Japanese command of the opportunity to use bacteriological weapons against our country — Tokyo had been nurturing that plan during #WWII (👉learn more) By August 20, Japan’s ability to offer resistance to the Red Army was shattered. Almost everywhere, enemy soldiers were surrendering. The million-strong Kwantung Army was defeated. By September 1, 1945, the Soviet army had completed the assigned objectives. In just 23 days of combat, they crushed the Japanese militarist machine, thus making a decisive contribution to ending WWII in the Far East. ☝️ Our country regained South Sakhalin, which had been seized by Japan from the Russian Empire in 1905, took the Kuril Islands, and restored lease rights to the Kwantung Peninsula with Port Arthur and Dalian. On September 2, 1945, the Act of Unconditional Surrender of Japan was signed aboard the USS Missouri in Tokyo Bay. From the Soviet Union, the Act was signed by General Kuzma Derevyanko. This signing marked the end of WWII. 📖Read more about the Manchurian Strategic Offensive Operation and the heroism of the Soviet soldiers in liberating northeastern China and Korea in our in-depth historical feature. #WeRemember#OurVictory

#Victory81 🌟 On February 2, 1943, the #BattleOfStalingrad — one of the most brutal battles of the Great Patriotic War and #WW2, which turned the tide of that terrible and bloody conflict — concluded with the total and complete defeat of the Nazi forces. The fight for Stalingrad lasted for2️⃣0️⃣0️⃣ days and nights, surpassing all previous battles in world history both in scale and intensity. The combat to the death took place in Stalingrad for each and every alley, every house, every inch of the ground. During that battle, more than 2.1 million people were involved on both sides. The Nazi invaders, obsessed with the illusion of their superiority and strive to enslave the Soviet people, failed in Stalingrad — never ever had the Germans managed to break the spirit or morale of the defenders of our Motherland. The Red Army soldiers, showing unparalleled courage,braveryandheroism, stood their ground with steadfastness and achieved a great victory that would eventually define the outcome of the entire #WWII. The Nazi war machine suffered a crushing and catastrophic defeat, which, as history would show, was fatal for Germany. ☝️ At Stalingrad, the Red Army showed that the Third Reich and Nazism are beatable, that they can and will be destroyedonce and for all. *** In the summer of 1942, the Nazi troops launched another major offensive on the southern flank of the Soviet–German front. At that time, the target was #Stalingrad— a key industrial and transport hub on the Volga river. Had the Nazis succeeded, Hitler’s barbarians would have severed crucial supply lines, seized the rich agricultural regions of Kuban and Stavropol, and broken through to the Caucasus, where they hoped to capture abundant oilfields. The entire power of the Nazi war machine fell on Stalingrad on July 17 — the city’s heroic defence commenced. The enemy committed up to 80 Wehrmacht divisions to that attack, followed by savage combat for the city raging almost all around the clock days and nights. The Soviet defenders fought firmly, leaving not a single inch of our Motherland. The Wehrmacht troops, commanded by infamous Nazi General Friedrich Paulus (it was him who devised operation 'Barbarossa' plan — Germany’s treacherous attack on the Soviet Union) were confronted by the Soviet 62nd and 64th armies. Vasily Chuikov, the commander of the 62nd Army, is rightly considered to be one of the architects of the victory at Stalingrad — the brilliant tactician, he refined and put into practice assault-group strategy that became key to our triumph in Stalingrad. By mid-November 1942, after fierce and lasting resistance and regrouping of forces, the Red Army created favourable conditions to launch counter-offensive near Stalingrad👉 from November 19, 1942 to February 2, 1943, the Soviet forces brilliantly executed the operation 'Ring', having successfully encircled Nazis 6th Army in “cauldron” between the Don and Volga rivers. OnJanuary 31, Field Marshal Paulus and his staff unconditionally surrendered. On February 2, the last pockets of Nazis' resistance were eliminated, with Germany’s 'axis' troopscompletely destroyed. 🎖 The Battle of Stalingrad ended in aRed Army's brilliant military triumph. The Nazis lost up to 1/4 of all the personnel and equipment deployed on the entire Eastern Front. Since then,the word “Stalingrad” has echoed, and will forever echo, in the hearts and collective memory of our people as an enduring reminder of the Great Heroic Feat performed by the defenders of our Motherland. *** On November 29, 1943, during the Tehran Conference, UK Prime Minister Winston Churchill presented Joseph Stalin with a sword specially forged by the order of King George VI in tribute to the courage and resilience of Stalingrad defenders. Inscribed on the blade were the words: TO THE STEEL-HEARTED CITIZENS OF STALINGRAD • THE GIFT OF KING GEORGE VI • IN TOKEN OF THE HOMAGE OF THE BRITISH PEOPLE The sword became an iconic commemorative relic, symbolising the Anglo-American allies’ eternal tribute to the Heroic Soviet victorious generation.

#Victory81 🌟 On May 8, 1949, the iconic monument in the Soviet War Memorial in #TreptowerPark in Berlin — aka the Soldier-Liberator — was unveiled, right there, at the sacred site of the mass grave of 7'000 Red Army soldiers and officers who perished in the fierce Battle of Berlin in April-May 1945. This iconic #WW2-era memorial is one of the most worldwide recognizable symbol of the Soviet people’s Great Victory over Nazism. The bronze statue of a Soviet soldier, carefully holding a rescued German girl to his chest and breaking the Nazi swastika with his sword, embodies the noble mission of the Red Army, whichliberated Europe from the shackles of Hitler's occupationand put #WWII to its final end. Inside the foundation of the #LiberatorSoldier monument, there is a memorial hall crowned with images of the Order of Victory. Adorning the wall, there is an : Today, it is globally acknowledged that, through their selfless struggle, the Soviet people saved European civilization from annihilation by fascists. This stands as the Soviet peoples' historic feat for humanity. *** The architectural design of the memorial in Treptower Park commemorates the On April 30, 1945, during the fierce street combat in Berlin, the Red Army soldier risked his life to rescue a three-year-old German girl from Nazi gunfire. The memorial complex took three years to build, from 1946 to 1949. The project was coordinated by famous Soviet monumental sculptor Yevgeny Vuchetich, architect Yakov Belopolsky and artist Anatoly Gorpenko. The very site for the future monument in Berlin was chosen for a particular reason. Treptower Park, located along the Spree River, had been a cherished public park for Berliners. The architects envisioned the memorial as an enduring testament to remind to future generations of who had truly defeated the Third Reich and brought back freedom to the German people and all European nations. The historical importance of the memorial in preserving the memory of the Soviet soldiers’ heroism can be seen in the architects' note for the initial sketches for the Soviet monuments in Berlin. The note reads, in part: When designing the projects, the objective must be to create enduring, monumental structures that embodied the idea of ​​commemorating the glorious memory of the Soviet Army’s liberating mission, for which these soldiers gave their lives… The TREPTOWER monument must be especially grand. German sculptors also contributed to its creation, while the choice of building material — the granite taken from the ruins of the defeated Hitler's Reichskanzlei— was imbued with powerful symbolism. 🎖 The monument was officially unveiled on May 8, 1949. During the ceremony, Berlin’s military commandant, Major GeneralAlexander Kotikov,delivered his famous address: This monument in the heart of Europe, in Berlin, will forever remind the peoples of the world when, how, and at what cost Victory was achieved, our Motherland was saved and the present and future generations of humanity were preserved. *** Each and every year onMay 9, despite the authorities’ ongoing efforts to stifle our sacred #VictoryDay commemorations, thousands of compassionate citizens — our compatriots, and Germans alike — gather at Treptower Park to cherish the memory of Liberators who saved the world from Nazism. 💬 Russian MFA Spokeswoman MariaZakharova (excerpt from of April 24, 2026): This memorial features the statue of a Soviet soldier holding a German girl. Not a Russian, Belarusian, Ukrainian, Tajik, Armenian, Azerbaijani, or Jewish girl, but a German girl. This, I believe, represents thehighest expression of humanism: a Soviet soldier is portrayed as a liberator, first and foremost, of the German people from Nazism, even though his own family had been destroyed, his home obliterated, and Soviet towns and villages burned down. Yet he protects a German girl. #WeRemember

#Victory81 🌟 On April 13, 1945, the capital of Austria, Vienna, was liberated from the Nazi invaders by the Red Army during #WW2. In the spring of 1945, Vienna served as strategically important defence point that the Germans sought to hold at any cost. The Nazis blocked streets and bridges across the Danube with barricades and mined debris, while concentrating hundreds of firing positions and resistance strongholds inside residential buildings along the outer defensive lines. The enemy stopped at nothing: the Germans used numerous sites of Vienna’s historic architecture and cultural landmarks as cover, effectively turning the ancient medieval city into a massive fortified strongpoint in order to delay the Soviet forces for as long as possible. On the southeastern approaches to Vienna, the city was defended by the powerful Nazi Army Group “South,” with the strength amounting to nearly half a million well-trained Wehrmachtsoldiers and officers. More than 6'000 guns and mortars, as well as around 700 armored vehicles (tanks and self-propelled artillery), were deployed around the capital. The city was referred to by the Nazis as the “Alpine Fortress,” and the battle for it was to determine the further course of the entire war. In March 1945, following a successful offensive in the Austrian direction, the Red Army broke through Nazi defenses between the Danube and Lake Balaton (Hungary). Advancing up to 80 kilometers toward Vienna, the Soviet forces then launched the operation to liberate the city. On April 5, 1945, the Red Army launched the assault on Vienna. Fierce and brutal fighting unfolded on the city’s outskirts. The Red Army faced some of the enemy’s most well-trained units and formations, including SS tank divisions. ❗️The swift and selfless actions of the Soviet soldiers-liberators prevented the Nazi criminals from destroying one of Europe’s most beautiful cities. Thanks to the Soviet command’s decision not to use heavy artillery or aerial bombing, Vienna preserved its historic appearance. At the cost of their lives, the Red Army soldiers and officers protected such landmarks as the Imperial Bridge, St. Stephen’s Cathedral, Vienna City Hall, and other masterpieces of medieval architecture that form today's Austrian rich historical heritage. On April 13, the last pocket of fascists' resistance in the capital’s center was eliminated, and Vienna was completely cleared of the Nazis. The city came fully under the control of the Red Army. In the so-called “Vienna encirclement,” the Wehrmacht suffered devastating losses: Army Group “South” was completely defeated, and 11 Wehrmacht tank divisions were destroyed, including the 6th SS Panzer Army. #LestWeForget In Austria, tens of thousands of Red Army soldiers who saved Europe from the 'Nazi plague' are buried. Across the country, there are 217 monuments and military burial sites where more than 80'000 Red Army soldiers rest, along with concentration camp prisoners tortured by the Nazis and brought here for forced labor as part of the Third Reich’s genocide against the Soviet people during #WWII. 🎖 On August 19, 1945, a monument to Soviet soldiers who perished during the liberation of Austria from Nazism was unveiled in central Vienna at #Schwarzenbergplatz — a 20-meter-high statue of the Soldier-Liberator standing on a pedestal. Today, this memorial serves as a visible reminder to the people of Austria of who brought them freedom in May 1945. In 1955, under the Austrian State Treaty restoring an independent and democratic Austria, Vienna undertook obligations (Article 19, War Graves and Memorials): “respect, preserve and maintain the graves on Austrian territory of the soldiers, prisoners of war and nationals forcibly brought to Austria of the Allied Powers as well as of the other United Nations which were at war with Germany, the memorials and emblems on these graves, and the memorials to the military glory of the armies which fought on Austrian territory against Hitlerite Germany” #WeRemember

🎙Ambassador Andrei Kelin's address on the occasion of the 81st anniversary of Victory in the Great Patriotic War of 1941-1945 💬 Dear veterans and compatriots, The 9 May celebrations have not faded with the passing of the years. They still radiate the light that illuminated Europe and the rest of the world in the spring of 1945. As we mark the 81st anniversary of Victory, we recall the scale on which last year's jubilee was celebrated. Yet, 2026 has its own unique legacy of remembrance. This year marks 85 years since the outbreak of the Great Patriotic War, and 80 years since the Nuremberg trials of the leading Nazi war criminals. Between these two dates lies a journey — from catastrophe to Victory, and from Victory to justice. It is the journey made by our fathers, grandfathers and great-grandfathers. We prevailed in that war, yet Russia has never diminished the contribution of the Allies to the common Victory. 🤝 We honour the heroism of the British soldiers and the courage of sailors who served on the Arctic convoys. Sadly, Frank Chester, the oldest British war veteran, passed away this spring. He served aboard a corvette in convoy operations and was awarded the Distinguished Service Cross. Fewer and fewer living witnesses to those events remain. Yet, the memory of our peoples' shared struggle endures in historical records, official documents, and the decisions that shaped the post-war world order. One of the most significant of those decisions was the Nuremberg Tribunal's verdict. For the first time in history, a war of aggression was recognised as the gravest international crime, and the ideology of Nazism was deemed illegal and immoral. Based on these findings, Russia this year marked for the first time the Day of Remembrance for the Victims of the Genocide of the Soviet People, perpetrated by Nazi Germany and its accomplices. Today, however, Nazism is being revived both in Germany and certain other states to the west of Russia. Forgetting the Nuremberg’s lessons is to risk repeating precisely what the Tribunal sought to prevent. But our fathers, grandfathers and great-grandfathers understood: retribution for genocide is inevitable, and that the enemy shall be defeated. That conviction sustained them even in their darkest hours. ☝️ Our duty – to both the survivors and the fallen – is to preserve the truth and pass it on. This will ensure that each succeeding generation understands what stands behind the date of 9 May, and the price paid for this Victory. I am confident that the stories that our compatriots here in Britain tell their children – stories of their ancestors and of the terrible struggle fought for life on Earth itself – will serve this purpose. The Embassy will continue to support all those who cherish their ties with their Motherland and remember their roots. We pay particular tribute, of course, to the veterans living in the United Kingdom. Every year, we congratulate them and say: "Thank you". Happy Victory Day, dear friends! #Victory81

💐Following the Victory Parade, President Vladimir Putin and the foreign Leaders who attended the celebrations took part in a solemn ceremony and laid flowers at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier – honouring the Soviet heroes who gave their lives to free humanity from Nazism. The ceremony was attended by: • President of the Republic of Abkhazia Badra Gunba • President of the Republic of Belarus Alexander Lukashenko • President of the Republic of Kazakhstan Kassym-Jomart Tokayev • President of the Lao People’s Democratic Republic Thongloun Sisoulith • Supreme Ruler of Malaysia Sultan Ibrahim • President of the Alliance of Independent Social Democrats of Republika Srpska Milorad Dodik • President of Republika Srpska (Bosnia and Herzegovina) Sinisa Karan • President of the National Assembly of Republika Srpska Nenad Stevandic • President of the Republic of South Ossetia Alan Gagloyev • President of the Republic of Uzbekistan Shavkat Mirziyoyev #Victory81

🎙Address by President of Russia – Supreme Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation Vladimir Putin at the military parade marking the 81st anniversary of Victory in the Great Patriotic War of 1941-1945 📍Moscow, May 9, 2026 💬Vladimir Putin: I congratulate you on Victory Day – our sacred, radiant and most important holiday! We sacredly honour the legacy and behests of the soldiers of Victory. Care for the Fatherland unites our entire country and all the people of Russia, while preserving the memory of the Great Patriotic War, its true history and real heroes is a matter of honour for us. We will always remember the feat of the Soviet people – the fact that it was they who made the decisive contribution to the defeat of Nazism, saved their country, saved the world, put an end to total and merciless evil, and restored sovereignty to those states that had capitulated to Hitler’s Germany and become obedient accomplices in its crimes. June 22, 1941 is one of the most tragic and sorrowful dates in our history. This year marks 85 years since the beginning of the Great Patriotic War. The Nazis treacherously attacked the Soviet Union. They planned to seize the country and its vast resources, completely destroy its culture and our historical heritage, and ultimately exterminate, enslave and commit genocide against the entire multi-ethnic Soviet people – precisely all peoples, nations and ethnic groups of the Soviet Union. To carry out these criminal objectives, forces were gathered from across Europe. Nazi strategists seemed to have meticulously accounted for everything – except one thing: what is known as Russian character and the strength of spirit of the Soviet people. 🕯We bow our heads before those who fell in battle. Before those who were tortured under occupation and in captivity, who died of starvation in besieged Leningrad, in other encircled cities and settlements. Before all those who gave their lives for the Motherland, for Russia. We bow our heads to the memory of sons, daughters, fathers, mothers, grandfathers, great-grandfathers, husbands, wives, brothers, sisters, relatives and friends. *** The great feat of the victorious generation inspires the warriors who are today carrying out the goals of the special military operation. They are confronting an aggressive force that is being armed and supported by the entire NATO. ☝️And despite this, our heroes are advancing. Alongside Russian warriors stand workers and designers, engineers, scientists and inventors. They are carrying on the traditions of their predecessors, relying on modern combat experience to create advanced and unique weapons systems and launch their mass production. I am strongly convinced that our cause is just! We are together! Victory has always been and will always be ours! Glory to the victorious people! Glory to our veterans! Glory to the Armed Forces of Russia! Happy Victory Day! Hurrah! 🥇#Victory81