Following are excerpts of remarks delivered on May 7 by U.S. Ambassador James S. Gilmore III to the Vienna-based Permanent Council of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe.
…Today, we recognize the shared sacrifice, enduring commitment, and unflinching bravery of the Allied forces and the underground movements in defeating the Axis powers in Europe. The people of many countries made great sacrifices and endured enormous suffering and loss of life. …
As we teach our children about the horrors of the concentration camps, the massacres, and the deportations, let us also tell the stories of the righteous citizens who protected their neighbors, the soldiers who sacrificed everything to fight fascism, the ordinary citizens who rose up to resist occupation, and all those who fought for freedom and stood up in defense of the rights and lives of others.