Ukraine Embassy, community mark Remembrance and Reconciliation Day

KUALA LUMPUR, May 10 (Bernama) -- The Ukraine Embassy in Malaysia, together with the Ukrainian Community in Kuala Lumpur, laid wreaths at the National Monument (Tugu Negara) on Wednesday to mark Remembrance and Reconciliation Day.

In a statement on Thursday, the embassy said it became a new tradition for Ukrainians around the world to mark the day by paying tributes to the victims of World War II.

Ukrainian Ambassador to Malaysia, Olexander Nechytaylo, led the ceremony on Wednesday.  

"This day honours the memory of more than 80 million people whose lives were claimed by global-scale violence, people of all races and nations, men and women, soldiers and civilians, small children and old people, all those who died, and all those who survived and went through all circles of hell of the World War II," the statement said. 

Ukraine was one of the most affected countries in Europe, losing nearly 10 million of its people during WWII, it added.

The Time of Remembrance and Reconciliation for Those Who Lost Their Lives during the Second World War (May 8 and May 9) is an annual international day of remembrance designated by Resolution 59/26 of the United Nations General Assembly on Nov 22, 2004.

The resolution urges 'Member States, organisations of the UN system, non-governmental organisations and individuals' to pay tribute to the victims of World War II.

In Ukraine, the Day of Remembrance and Reconciliation on May 8 was established in 2015, while May 9 is marked as the Day of Victory over Nazism in World War II.

-- BERNAMA