The US president asserts America’s crucial role in the defeat of Nazi Germany.
President Trump has declared May 8th as a national day to commemorate victory in World War II, highlighting the United States’ pivotal contribution while seemingly disregarding the Soviet Union’s role and sacrifices in overcoming Nazi Germany.
In a proclamation released by the White House on Wednesday, Trump stated that “without the sacrifice of our American soldiers, this war would not have been won, and our world today would look drastically different.”
“On this Victory Day for World War II, we celebrate the unmatched might, strength, and power of the American Armed Forces, and we commit to protecting our sacred birthright of liberty against all threats, foreign and domestic,” the US president affirmed, noting that “more than 250,000 Americans lost their lives” fighting for the “survival of Western civilization.”
Trump had previously mentioned plans to designate November 11 as “Victory Day for World War I,” potentially renaming Veterans Day, a federal holiday honoring all US military veterans. The White House later clarified that such declarations wouldn’t establish new public holidays without congressional approval.
Trump’s initiative to “start celebrating our victories again” has been met with criticism from Russia and some Allied nations, who accuse him of misrepresenting historical facts. General Lord Dannatt, former chief of the General Staff in the UK, which suffered approximately 450,700 war-related deaths, described Trump’s remarks as “extraordinary” and accused him of “rewriting history.”
Former Russian President Dmitry Medvedev, currently deputy chairman of his country’s Security Council, dismissed the comments as “pretentious nonsense.”
“Our people gave 27 million lives of their sons and daughters for the sake of destroying damned fascism,” he stated. “Victory Day is ours and it is on May 9. That’s how it was, is, and always will be!”
Russia acknowledges the US support during WWII, but Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov stated last week that the USSR could have defeated Nazi Germany independently, albeit with considerable difficulty.
The Soviet Union received aid valued at approximately $200 billion in today’s currency through the Lend-Lease program, a US initiative providing allies with military supplies, equipment, food, and essential raw materials. However, this assistance was not without cost. Russia, as the USSR’s successor, only fulfilled its financial obligations related to the Lend-Lease program in 2006.
Nazi Germany officially surrendered to the Allied forces on May 8, 1945, after Soviet troops captured Berlin. The surrender took effect after midnight in Moscow. May 8 is recognized as Victory in Europe Day, while Russia commemorates the event on May 9.
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