On the anniversary of the Russian military invasion of Ukraine, events and actions in support of Ukrainians took place on Friday, February 24, in many cities of Germany.
More than ten thousand people marched through the main streets of East Berlin to the Russian emby under the slogan “We will never forget”. A private initiative on the basis of the Berlin Story Bunker museum in the morning installed a Russian T-72 tank, blown up by a mine in the vicinity of Bucha, on the platform in front of the diplomatic mission. “We will put the Russians’ trash in front of the emby,” Viland Hybel, the organizer of the action, wrote on Twitter. The tank will be idle until Monday. In the evening, hundreds of people gathered in front of the emby, some of them put candles on the tank.
After the main procession, a rally was held in front of the Brandenburg Gate under the slogan Stand with Ukraine. It was attended by the mayor of Berlin Franziska Giffay and the ambador of Ukraine to the Federal Republic of Germany Aleksey Makeev. Other demonstrations, rallies and processions took place in different districts of the German capital. Already in the morning in front of the emby of Ukraine, the “Mourning path in memory of the victims of the war in Ukraine” march began. A demonstration of schoolchildren took place on Unter-den-Linden street, in the afternoon supporters of the armistice marched along this street to the Reichstag under the slogan “Peaceful march: peace in Ukraine and in the world.”
In front of the building of the former “Moscow” cafe, which was renamed “Kyiv” cafe, a demonstration “Don’t take the terrible for granted!” was held as part of the Berlin Literary Festival. Writers Elfriede Jelinek and Gerda Müller, as well as historians Karl Schlegel and Timothy Snyder called for it. At the same time, a rally was held in front of the Brandenburg Gate under the slogan “For peace instead of war”. The Council of Musicians of Berlin organized a service for peace in Ukraine in the Church of Remembrance.
The President of Germany Frank-Walter Steinmeier together with the Ambador of Ukraine Alexei Makeev invited politicians and public representatives to an official event of solidarity with Ukraine. Chancellor Olaf Scholz of the Federal Republic of Germany, President of the Bundestag Berbel Bas, members of the German Cabinet of Ministers and other departments were also present in the Berlin residence of the head of state – Bellevue Palace. Those gathered honored the memory of the victims of Russia’s war of aggression in Ukraine with a minute.
President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyi spoke during the event via video link. In the gallery of the Bellevue Palace, an exhibition of Ukrainian photographers who captured the scenes of the war was held.
Steinmeier emphasized in his speech that Germany, as a state of the European Union, makes the largest contribution to the military support of Ukraine. According to the President of the Federal Republic of Germany, Putin is betting on the fact that Ukraine’s allies will settle down, get used to it and stop providing aid. “We will not give him this pleasure,” Steinmeier noted. He called on the Russian president to withdraw troops from the territory of Ukraine and stressed that Germany would not stop providing military aid. “You can rely on Germany!”, Steinmeier ured the Ukrainian ambador.
Steinmeier addressed Russia with the following words: “Putin wants to win, with all his might – but in reality the following is happening: who kills and destroys, who destroys Ukraine and its cities with bombs, who takes away children, who himself forces his soldiers to die on the battlefield , he will not be a winner, he has already lost everything.” Steinmeier emphasized that Germany is not participating in the war, but “this war directly affects all of us.”
In a video address, Chancellor Olaf Scholz paid tribute to the courage of Ukrainians in the confrontation with Russia, which, according to him, is waging “the cruelest war of aggression against Ukraine.” Scholz remarked: “Whoever looks back at the past hour will recognize that the Russian president has lost.” “It is not our arms deliveries that are prolonging the war. The sooner the Russian president admits that he will not be able to achieve his imperialist goal, the greater the chance for a quick end to the war. It is in Putin’s hands. He can end this war,” Scholz summarized.
Actions against the Russian invasion took place across Europe on Friday.
The Eiffel Tower in Paris, the National Theater in Warsaw, the Roman Coliseum were among the famous structures that were illuminated in the colors of the blue-yellow Ukrainian flag.
The head of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, as well as the head of NATO, Jens Stoltenberg, while in Tallinn, honored the memory of the dead Ukrainians with a minute of silence. The same ceremony was held in London, in front of the residence of the British Prime Minister at 10 Downing Street. Statements condemning the war were made by several European leaders.