On May 8, Ukraine and the world will commemorate the 81st anniversary of victory over Nazism and the end of World War II in Europe. This is a very important date for Ukraine, whose people suffered a nationwide tragedy during WWII and played a major role in defeating Hitler. 

During WWII, Ukraine lost approximately 8 million people, including 5 million civilians and 3 million soldiers. Ukrainians fought in a variety of armies as part of the anti-Hitler coalition, including 6 million in the Red Army and hundreds of thousands in resistance movements and allied armies from Poland, the United States, Canada, and France. 

The end of WWII brought peace, but not freedom, to many European nations. The Soviet Union occupied or controlled Ukraine, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, and other Central European nations. One totalitarian rule replaced another. 

Putin is portraying victory over Nazism as a solely Russian achievement (in 2010, he went so far as to say that the victory would have been achieved without Ukrainians). But no single country has the right to claim exclusive rights to the victory over Nazism, which was a result of great efforts by dozens of countries and hundreds of nations. 

Even more unacceptable are attempts to use the moral authority of a WWII victor to justify modern wars of aggression and atrocities.  

We urge all partners and international organizations to honor the memory of all WWII victims while also protecting and promoting the fact-based historical truth about that terrible war. We urge everyone to avoid being used as a tool for Russian propaganda and the whitewashing of war crimes. 

Ukraine, along with other European nations, will commemorate this day on May 8, the day the war in Europe ended. We will honor the achievements of those who defeated Nazi evil. And we will make every effort to put an end to Russia's war on Ukraine, which is the most brutal aggression on European soil since WWII.