The Foreign Ministers of Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland and Romania signed a joint statement to mark the 80th anniversary of the signing of the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact. The statement aims to remember the victims of totalitarian regimes.
23 August will mark the 80th anniversary of the signing of the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact between the Soviet Union and Nazi Germany that sparked the Second World War and doomed half of Europe to decades of misery. The Pact contained the secret protocol, which effectively carved up Eastern Europe into spheres of influence.
“Today we remember all those whose deaths and broken lives were a consequence of the crimes perpetrated under the ideology of Nazism and Stalinism,” the statement reads.
Furthermore, the ministers call upon the governments of all European countries to provide both moral and material support to the ongoing historical investigation of the totalitarian regimes. ”The memory of the victims compels us to promote historical justice by continuing research and raising public awareness of the totalitarian legacy on the European continent,” reads the joint statement. The signatory countries emphasise that we are determined to continue working with our partners in Europe and around the world so that the horrors of the past never re-emerge.
The ministers affirm that today’s Europe is a safe place for all peoples, and they are ready to resolutely resist any kind of injustice. ”We believe that Europeans will never tolerate totalitarianism or genocide against any people,” they add.
Read the full statement here: https://vm.ee/en/joint-statement-estonia-latvia-lithuania-poland-and-romania-occasion-80-years-signing-molotov
Additional information:
Kaisa Hanna Parel
Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Estonia
Communication Department
+372 637 7618 / +372 53323045