On 29-30 September 1941, Nazi occupiers committed one of the largest mass executions of the Holocaust in Kyiv’s Babyn Yar ravine. In just two days, nearly 34,000 Jews of Kyiv were murdered.

In total, during the Nazi occupation until 1943, around 100,000 people became victims of executions at Babyn Yar, mostly Jews, but also Roma, Ukrainian nationalists, members of the underground resistance, prisoners of war, and even patients of a nearby psychiatric hospital.

Today, Ukraine, together with the international community, consistently restores historical truth and ensures dignified commemoration of those who were killed.

At the same time, the right to preserve the memory of the barbaric crimes committed by the Nazis was fought for long before Ukraine regained its independence. For decades, the Soviet authorities hushed up the truth about the mass murder of Jews at Babyn Yar and obstructed the proper commemoration of the victims of the Holocaust.

The Ukrainian movement to restore truth and memory became especially visible during the “Thaw” of the 1960s.

Ukrainian writer Anatolii Kuznetsov created the documentary novel “Babyn Yar”, based on his own childhood memories. This work was circulated mainly through underground copying and distribution, despite the bans and restrictions imposed by Soviet censorship..

On 29 September 1966, on the 25th anniversary of the tragedy, another prominent Ukrainian writer, Ivan Dziuba, spoke at a spontaneous rally in Babyn Yar, calling on Ukrainians and Jews to jointly resist Soviet oblivion and chauvinism. This spontaneous and courageous speech broke the decades-long silence imposed by Soviet censorship and became an important milestone in the movement of the Ukrainian Sixtiers and dissidents.

The restoration of Ukraine’s independence made it possible to return Babyn Yar to its rightful place in the national and European memory of the Holocaust.

Regrettably, in 2022, Russian aggression once again made Babyn Yar a place directly affected by war. On March 1, 2022, Russia launched a missile strike on the area of Babyn Yar. Two and a half weeks later, Russian shelling of Kharkiv took the life of Borys Romanchenko, who had survived four Nazi concentration camps. Numerous Holocaust memorials have been damaged by Russian strikes. We view these actions as a continuation of Moscow’s war against truth and memory.

For many years, Moscow has used history as an instrument of aggression, manipulating the memory of the Second World War and the fight against Nazism to justify its war against Ukraine. These manipulations must be countered by joint efforts in Europe and beyond to preserve the truth about the past, condemn the politicization of history, and reject its use to justify present-day atrocities.

Ukraine also marks the 85th anniversary of the tragedy under constant Russian attacks.

For Ukraine, the lesson of Babyn Yar has a clear meaning: mass crimes must be called by their proper names; their perpetrators and organizers must be held accountable; and attempts to conceal, deny or justify such crimes must be resolutely countered. This is the true meaning of the words “Never Again!”

Eternal memory to all the victims of Babyn Yar.