Todd Bishop
September 1st was the 80th anniversary of the outbreak of World War II, and many mourning activities were held in Poland. During the large-scale commemoration of the capital Warsaw, President Duda called on the people to cherish peace and avoid repeating the tragedy.
On September 1, 1939, the Nazi Germans launched an attack on Poland, which was regarded as the beginning of the Second World War. More mourning activities were held in Poland, among which the capital Warsaw was the largest and many leaders attended. These include German Chancellor Angela Merkel, US Vice President Mike Pence, and French Prime Minister Edouard Philippe.
Polish President Andrzej Duda reviewed the military honor guards, attended the event’s multinational leaders, and honked the memorial bell engraved with commemorative words. The honor guard soldiers presented flowers to the unknown martyrs.
Du Da said in his speech that cruel cleansing and genocide bring disaster to the world. The world should always remember this terrible experience and appeal to the people to cherish peace and avoid repeating the tragedy.
In a mourning event held earlier in Wielun, German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier apologized for the damage caused by the Germans in the past and asked for forgiveness.
Russia was not invited to participate
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson and Russian President Vladimir Putin did not attend the mourning activities in Warsaw. The former Soviet Red Army paid thousands of lives in the battle against the Nazi Germans. But after Poland annexed Crimea in Russia, relations with Russia fell to a freezing point. The Russian Foreign Ministry has stated that it is “stupid” behavior that Poland did not invite Russia to attend the event.
