23 August this year marks the 80th anniversary of the signing of the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact – an agreement between Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union that paved the way for the Second World War and its consequences: from mass expulsions, through slave labour and war crimes, to the Holocaust and ethnic cleansing.

In order to reflect on the meaning of those events and seeking to explain it, yet above all in order to pay respect to those who have experienced pain and suffering, the Soviet Past Research Laboratory with the European Network Remembrance and Solidarity, we are joining the observance of the European Day of Remembrance for Victims of Totalitarian Regimes in 2019.