Statement by President von der Leyen ahead of International Holocaust Remembrance Day

Ahead of the International Holocaust Remembrance Day, President von der Leyen issued the following statement:

“Tomorrow, we mark the 81^st anniversary of the liberation of the Nazi concentration and extermination camp Auschwitz-Birkenau. We remember and pay tribute to the six million Jewish women, men and children murdered in the Holocaust, as well as all the other innocent victims of the Nazi regime. These lives were brutally ended by an ideology of hatred but their memory shall endure as moral testament to humanity and as a permanent warning.

Three generations after the Shoah, Holocaust remembrance is increasingly important. Holocaust distortion is being used to divide us, to relativise crime and to fuel antisemitism. Let us be clear: nothing can ever justify distorting, minimising or instrumentalising one of the darkest chapters in Europe's history.

We have witnessed a spike of antisemitic acts all over Europe, forcing many Jews to hide their identity and live in fear. This is unacceptable. There is no place and no justification for antisemitism. 

We stand with our European Jewish communities. Jewish life in Europe must be able to thrive, not hide. Europe must be a safe place for Jews and people of all faiths. We continue to implement the EU Strategy on combating antisemitism and fostering Jewish life together with all EU Member States. To tackle antisemitism online, we are developing a network of trusted flaggers. We are working to prevent radicalisation, ensuring the protection of vulnerable groups online and strengthening security measures to protect public spaces and places of worship from attacks. 

We are now reaching the end of the so-called ‘era of the witness’. As the last survivors pass away, our responsibility increases. We must find new ways to remember the atrocities, to tell the truth of what happened and to learn from the past. To this end, we are safeguarding the Holocaust sites and strengthening their visibility and recognition across generations.

Remembrance is not a given. It depends on us. We must pass on the lessons of the Shoah and build a Europe free from antisemitism and all forms of hatred. Holocaust remembrance must remain accurate, relevant and meaningful. This is our shared responsibility and our enduring commitment as Europeans.”

The statement is available online.