Moldovan president's message on 86th anniversary of signing Ribbentrop-Molotov Pact

President Maia Sandu sent a message today on the 86th anniversary of the signing of the Ribbentrop-Molotov Pact. The head of state stated that the lesson offered by this page of history 'is more relevant than ever — because we still see attempts to redraw borders by force, to subject people against their will'.

Maia Sandu mentioned that by signing the Ribbentrop-Molotov Pact, two totalitarian regimes decided to divide the world, ignoring the peoples' rights to freedom and dignity. As a result, 'millions of people were uprooted, sent to camps, or killed,' said the head of state.


'Today we mark 86 years since the signing of the Ribbentrop-Molotov Pact, through which two totalitarian regimes decided to divide the world, ignoring the peoples' rights to freedom and dignity. What followed, we all know: millions of people were uprooted, sent to camps, or killed. In our country, terrible tragedies occurred — our grandparents and great-grandparents suffered deportations, famine, fear and deprivation,' said Maia Sandu.


The head of state noted that 86 years after this event, 'we see politicians who want to divide us and drag us back into the darkness of dictatorship and fear, where we must never return.'


'This historical lesson is more relevant than ever because we still see attempts to redraw borders by force, to subject people against their will. We see politicians among us who want to divide us and pull us back into the darkness of dictatorship and fear, where we must never return,' emphasized the president.


The official said that it is necessary for the path of freedom, democracy, and peace to be irreversible because only then can we honor the memory of those who suffered.


'However, the Republic of Moldova and its citizens have chosen the path of freedom, democracy, and peace. We must ensure that this path is irreversible. Only in this way can we honor the memory of those who suffered and build a strong, free, and European country,' concluded the head of state.


The Ribbentrop-Molotov Pact, also known as the Stalin-Hitler Pact was signed in Moscow on August 23, 1939, by the head of government and foreign minister of the USSR, Vyacheslav Molotov, and German foreign minister Joachim von Ribbentrop, in the presence of Stalin. The document represented a non-aggression treaty between the Soviet Union and Nazi Germany. Based on this, the two parties divided between them the spheres of territorial influence in Europe.

Just nine days after the signing of the Ribbentrop-Molotov Pact, on September 1, 1939, German forces attacked Poland, triggering World War II.