75th Anniversary of the victory of Stalingrad

1. Februar 2018

On February 2, 2018 the International Federation of the Resistance fighters (FIR) – Association of Anti-fascists celebrates the 75th anniversary of the Red Army’s victory of Stalingrad. The way to Stalingrad was signed by murdering, homicide, exploitation, suppression and destruction – done by German fascism and its allied. Coventry, Rotterdam, Warsaw and Belgrade are the symbols of the air terror, which carried the armed forces over the cities of Europe. Auschwitz, Buchenwald, Majdanek, Sobibor have themselves entrenched in the mind of mankind as ‘monuments’ of the Holocaust – a holocaust produced by Nazi ‘Superior Race’ theories against all peoples, regardless of colour and race.

The victory of Stalingrad stands against it for hope for liberation and the resistance against murderous German fascism.

This hope was paid with countless human lives. The Soviet side registered approximately one million victims among the civilian population and the fighters of the Red Army in this battle. We remind the dead ones and commemorate all of those, which used themselves with their life and their health for the liberation of its country from the fascist occupation and smashing the fascist beast.

This battle of Stalingrad was not only of military importance. It represented a historical turning point in the fight of the anti-Hitler coalition with the expansionistic requirement of German fascism:

  • From a military-strategic point, this defeat of the German troops was a turning point, because hereby for the first time the advance was stopped and the “unconquerable” Wehrmacht had to accept a destroying defeat.
  • For the development of the anti-Hitler coalition in this battle has been proven that the common efforts of all allied could defeat the murderous beast of fascism and its military apparatus. Red Army’s victory in Stalingrad and afterwards had strong signal effect for Great Britain and the USA to speed up the preparations for the opening of a second front. Stalingrad knows to be regarded therefore with joins and right as beginning of the end of the robbery and murder campaign of the Wehrmacht through half Europe.
  • For the resistance movement in all occupied countries and in Germany the battle of Stalingrad was the symbol for the coming defeat of fascism. The women and men in the resistance drew from it strength, motivation and optimism for the continuation of their anti-fascist fight in the political clearing-up work and in the armed Resistance.

In this sense, FIR reminds the anniversary of victory of Stalingrad. We connect our thanks to the fighters with the promise to pass this memory on of the today’s generations. We cannot understand and accept that the today’s German government refuses to participate at the celebration in Volgograd this year.