History offers timely reminder of the lessons from WW2

Bratislava, 22 April 2010 – European historians, war veterans, political and religious leaders, economists, military academics, and former resistance fighters are gathering at a two-day conference in Bratislava, Slovakia, this week to ensure that, 65 years after the end of WW2, the lessons of Europe’s last great conflict are not forgotten.

The aim of the conference is to try to put current global crises and tensions into an historic context to ensure that the lessons learned from the tragedies of WW2 are not forgotten when dealing with today’s conflicts – and so follow the advice of British wartime prime minister Winston Churchill who said: “Study history, study history. In history lie all the secrets of statecraft.”Churchill’s sentiments are echoed in a quote from the US President during WW2, Franklin D. Roosevelt, who said: “If civilisation is to survive, we must cultivate the science of human relationships – the ability of all peoples, of all kinds, to live together, in the same world at peace.”

British war veterans attending the event fought in the Arctic Convoys, which were delivering vital supplies to the northern ports of the Soviet Union during WW2.Also in attendance are French officials from the “Normandia-Neman” Memorial Complex, which commemorates the fighter squadron of the French Air Force that served on the Eastern Front of the European Theatre of World War II.

Former resistance fighters from all over Europe will also join delegates in Bratislava to share their experiences.In particular the conference will explore ways that a constructive dialogue and understanding between Russia and Europe (East and West) can help to ease global tensions, not just between the different European geopolitical blocs, but on a wider global scale.

The current global economic crisis is one of the subjects under discussion; how it is caused not just by short-term financial and market instability, but also by long-term changes in the world’s social, economic and political balances – and how placing the crisis in its broader historic and geopolitical context can help prevent it potentially escalating into a more serious international crisis or conflict.

The conference, under the auspices of Slovakian Prime Minister Robert Fico, the Russian President Dmitry Medvedev and H.M. King Juan Carlos of Spain, has been organised as part of a joint initiative by a number of European and Russian NGOs by Vladimir Yakunin, Founding President of the NGO World Public Forum ‘Dialogue of Civilizations’ and head of Russian Railways.

In a personal message to delegates, Russian President Dmitry Medvedev said: “Today all those who, in one way or another, participate in the political process – statesmen and public dignitaries, NGOs and the media – bear a great responsibility for consolidating humanistic rudiments in international relations, principles of mutual respect and taking into account the interests of each other. Only on such foundations shall we be able to successfully withstand the threats and challenges of the present-day and, in the final count, to remove once and for all the danger of war for Europe and the world. In the new, twenty-first century, we must stringently abide by the principle of equitable and indivisible security. This is the goal of the Russian initiative to conclude a European Security Treaty that is now being widely discussed in the continent, including within the framework of your forum.”

Keynote speakers include Fico, Yakunin and the former Austrian Chancellor Alfred Gusenbauer. Other speakers include Walter Schwimmer, the former Secretary General of the Council of Europe, His Beatitude Archbishop Christopher of Prague, His Beatitude Tadeusz Kondrusievics, the Roman Catholic Archbishop of Minsk and Mahilyow in Belarus, Yisrael Meir Lau, the Chief Rabbi of Tel Aviv and Chairman of Israel’s Holocaust memorial Yad Vashem, and the Slovakian MEP Katarina Nevedalova.

The conference will discuss the European tragedy of WW2, the resistance against the Nazi occupation, the united role of the Allies, and the lessons learned from history. Other themes include: unity in Europe since 1945; East Europe as a facilitator; changing the driving forces of nationhood; creating unity between nations in adversity; mechanisms to consolidate political and social forces.

Vladimir Yakunin, founder and co-chairman of the World Public Forum ‘Dialogue of Civilizations’, said: “The Forum’s activity aims to create an atmosphere of trust in the world based on dialogue generally recognised to be a productive means of co-operation between the different civilisations of our common world.”

Mr Yakunin added: “It is vital that we continue to remember the lessons of history that came out of the terrible conflicts of the last century in order that we do not repeat the mistakes that led up to those wars. With the various tensions that are playing out in Europe and the wider world today, the need for us to remember those lessons is perhaps more acute than it has been for many years. This is what I very much hope this conference in Bratislava will help achieve.”

During the Conference there will also be a wreath-laying ceremony at the monument for fallen soldiers in Bratislava.

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For further information, please contact:

Vladimir Kulikov
Executive Director, World Public Forum “Dialogue of Civilizations”
Tel: +7 985 991 87 03
Email: vladimir_kulikov@wpfdc.org

Or

Dennis Landsbert-Noon
Managing Director, Burson-Marsteller Brussels
Tel: +32 473 68 55 59
Email: dennis.landsbertnoon@bm.com