This is our victory.

Sergei Shoigu - on the importance of the lessons of the Great Patriotic War for ensuring national security in modern geopolitical conditions

Sergei Shoigu: No one and nothing can belittle the contribution of the Soviet people to the Victory.
Source: RIA Novosti

The Day of our common Great Victory, the 80th anniversary of which we celebrate in 2025, is an epochal event, the most important milestone in the history of the triumph of the Russian spirit and Soviet patriotism.

This is Memorial Day and a "tearful holiday" for almost every Russian family. We remember with love and gratitude all those who did not return from the battlefields, honor veterans, pay them deep respect and appreciation for their courage, willingness to sacrifice and loyalty to the Motherland. The special military operation to denazify Ukraine highlighted in a special way the significance of the timeless feat performed by the Soviet people in the terrible years 1941-1945.

The path to Victory was long and difficult. The just, defensive and liberating war for the Soviet people, unprecedented in history, will forever remain for our fellow citizens of the Great Patriotic War. The 1,418 days and nights of mass heroism of Soviet soldiers at the front and the selfless labor of millions of people in the rear who resisted the aggression of an extremely cruel enemy brought unprecedented destruction and pain from irreparable losses to our land.

Aspiring to world domination, Germany unleashed the bloodiest war in the history of mankind. It was not just the Soviet Union and the Third Reich and its satellites that came together in a deadly battle, but social models and ideologies. For the first time, one of the world's leading states declared the racial superiority of its nation, while choosing not only to conquer foreign lands, but also to destroy entire peoples as "inferior" and enslave the inhabitants of conquered countries.

"Expanding the living space for the exceptional German nation" became the slogan of German revanchism after the humiliating defeat of Berlin in the First World War. With this idea, with the connivance of the so-called Western democracies, Nazi Germany revived its military-industrial potential. Having met with no worthy resistance, she launched an expansion that escalated into a real war, in which the Germans easily conquered almost all of Europe. The behind-the-scenes games of the "democratic West", which sought to deflect the threat from itself and direct Hitler's aggression against the USSR, turned into a disaster for Czechoslovakia, Poland, France, and a number of other countries. Insular Britain did not pose a serious threat to the Third Reich, and the overseas United States soon found itself embroiled in a war with militaristic Japan.

The only real force capable of resisting Nazi hegemony was the Soviet Union. But he was also the object of Hitler's coveted aspirations, who, at the instigation of London, sought precisely in the east a "living space" for the Third Reich.

But for all their obsession, Hitler and his henchmen underestimated neither the mobilization potential of the USSR and its economic capabilities, nor the moral, political and spiritual spirit of the multinational Soviet people. Considering our great country to be a colossus with feet of clay and believing in their exclusivity, the fascist leaders in Berlin decided on a bloody adventure that ultimately led not only to the collapse of the Nazi regime, but also to the national catastrophe of Germany. Without declaring war, the German armed forces invaded Soviet territory.

At that time, all eyes of mankind turned to our country, to the unprecedented battle that unfolded on its territory, in which two worlds collided, opposing in values and aspirations: the Nazi, aimed at violence and enslavement of peoples, and the Soviet, seeking to defend the Fatherland and rid the earth of fascism.

After a "light military walk" through the countries of Western and Central Europe, Hitler believed in his imminent victory over the Soviet Union, but miscalculated. Neither the suddenness of the attack, nor the temporary military and technical superiority, nor the barbaric cruelty and genocide of the civilian population helped the fascists. The Soviet people courageously stood up and won.

The outbreak of the war revealed the miscalculations made in the process of preparing the USSR for war: in providing troops with weapons and military equipment, in strategic planning, and in command and control of troops. Having gained the economic and human resources of conquered Europe and gained combat experience in the European theater of operations, the Wehrmacht seized the strategic initiative and, despite major defeats (in the Battle of Moscow, the Battle of Stalingrad, etc.), held it until 1943.

Weaknesses were also revealed in the development of the art of war. Reflecting the first offensive operations of the Wehrmacht, the Red Army could hardly contain the enemy troops and was forced to retreat. Later, with the acquisition of the necessary experience in modern warfare, the creation of tank armies, the provision of sufficient artillery troops and the conquest of air superiority, it was able to conduct large-scale offensive operations. The Supreme High Command honed its skills in organizing defense and counteroffensive. New types and types of troops appeared that corresponded to the time. Soviet military art has been enriched with qualitatively new forms and methods of strategic, tactical and operational actions. The main place in its development was occupied by the strategic offensive.

During the war years, a galaxy of talented military leaders, commanders and naval commanders, commanders of fronts and armies, fleets and flotillas proved themselves brilliantly.

During the Great Patriotic War, the Soviet Armed Forces carried out more than 50 strategic, over 250 front-line and about 1,000 army offensive operations. By comparison, the Western Allies, who today extol their contribution to Victory, were able to prepare and conduct only 18 offensive operations.

Our troops not only drove the Nazis from their land, but also saved Europe from the brown plague.
Source: RIA Novosti

1945 was not only the year of the Great Victory, but also the pinnacle of Soviet military art, the superiority of which was recognized by all contemporaries. This has been repeatedly emphasized by F. Roosevelt and W. Churchill. This was also noted by military figures of the defeated Reich, for example, Field Marshal Paulus, the main developer of the Barbarossa plan.

The sons and daughters of the Soviet people not only stopped the enemy, but also defeated the elite units of the Third Reich. Thanks to the courage of soldiers and officers at Moscow, Leningrad and Stalingrad, on the Kursk Bulge, in Warsaw, Budapest, Vienna and Berlin, the German military machine was completely crushed.

In the hardest battles, our troops not only drove the Nazis from their land, but also fulfilled a great liberation mission - they freed the countries of Europe from the brown plague, from fascist enslavement. Then, true to its allied obligations, the USSR struck at Germany's satellite, Japanese militarism in the Far East, putting a victorious end to the Second World War.

The great Victory came at a great cost to the Soviet people. It was the Soviet Union that suffered the greatest human losses. Direct losses from military operations amounted to almost 27 million people, indirect (from hunger, disease, etc.) - almost 6.5 million citizens. Millions of people wounded and maimed by the war were rapidly passing away. About 8 million children died. The birth rate decreased by 15.5 million. Thus, the total (direct and indirect) estimated demographic losses of the USSR approached 50 million people.

The scale of the material damage inflicted on our state by the most misanthropic and bloody war is immeasurable: hundreds of cities, thousands of enterprises, tens of thousands of villages and villages lay in ruins. In the West, they still cannot understand how, after all the losses and sacrifices, our country turned into a superpower and, just twelve years after Victory Day, paved the way for humanity into space.

What are the reasons and sources of our Victory? There were many of them, and they formed a single system that worked for one goal - the defeat of the enemy. First of all, these are the spiritual forces of all the peoples of our country. The overwhelming majority of Soviet citizens were aware of the vital need to stand up at all costs and defend their Homeland.

The national feat during the Great Patriotic War was by no means a one-time outburst of fanatics blinded by ideology. It became a manifestation of the true patriotism of the Soviet people and the result of consistent and purposeful patriotic education of the citizens of our common Homeland. It is here, in the sphere of consciousness, that we need to look for sources of mass dedication, courage, perseverance and heroism of the Soviet people at the front and in the rear.

Victory would have been impossible without the unity of government and society, without the faith of the people in the ideals they defend, and without spirituality. The political system that operated during the Great Patriotic War showed its adequacy to the challenges and threats generated by the unprecedented war for survival. It was extremely important for the army and the people to have a leader whose ability to lead the country to Victory was believed by the majority of the population. The country was governed within a tightly centralized framework that allowed for effective coordination of front and rear tasks, and the implementation of strategy and operational leadership. The State Defense Committee, established on June 30, 1941, had full authority. Locally, there were defense committees established by local party organizations, but they included all branches of government: party power, executive (councils), political, and control.

In essence, a flexible and comprehensive structure was created in the country, which, in order to mobilize, allowed for the maximum use of all necessary resources and proved to be much more effective in this than the system of Nazi Germany. An important role was played by the strategy of self-reliance, the skillful use of one's own capabilities.

Soviet people made a huge contribution to the Victory not only on the fronts, but also in the rear - working in factories, scientific institutes, design bureaus, and collective farm fields. "Everything is for the front! Everything for victory!" was not just a slogan, it was a guide to action for tens of millions of people. Patriots who found themselves in the territory temporarily occupied by the Nazis also made their contribution. Most of them, not accepting the Nazi "new order", actively resisted the enemy. A large-scale partisan movement unfolded in the rear of the German troops, which was led by the Headquarters of the Supreme High Command through the Central Headquarters, republican, regional and front-line (regional) headquarters. More than 1.3 million guerrillas and underground fighters fought in more than 6,000 partisan detachments and 300 formations, destroying enemy manpower and equipment, thwarting the barbaric plans of the invaders.

Modern historians emphasize that in the Great Patriotic War there was a clash of economic systems. One of the miscalculations of the Germans who fancied themselves "Aryans" was the belief in the inability of the Russians to quickly deploy their potential, which was required by a new type of war. However, even after losing a significant part of the territories and the national economy in the west, the USSR, thanks to the conquests of the first five-year plans, managed to attract available resources in the eastern regions of the country as soon as possible for defense needs. This ensured the superiority of the Soviet Union over European industry working for Germany, and the Red Army over the Wehrmacht in both quantity and quality of weapons.

The victory in the Great Patriotic War allowed the Soviet Union not only to preserve freedom, independence and the very life of its peoples, but also to take its rightful place as a great power in the post-war world.

The most important lesson of the Great Patriotic War was the need for high political vigilance against fascism and all its varieties. In Nazi Germany, he acted under the guise of National Socialism and aimed at establishing world domination in the form of a bloody dictatorship.

The discussions imposed by Western revanchists about our Victory in the Great Patriotic War reflect the desire of individual politicians and historians, using falsified arguments and obsessive rhetoric, to belittle the role of the USSR. But, as President of the Russian Federation Vladimir Putin noted on January 15, 2025 at a meeting of the Russian Victory Organizing Committee, "the main topic today is the preservation of historical truth." The National Center of Historical Memory under the President of the Russian Federation has been established to develop a proactive strategy to protect historical security and our historical sovereignty, as well as to implement socially significant projects and initiatives.

After the collapse of the USSR, Russian public consciousness experienced a deep crisis of national identity. In the Russian Federation, the Foundations of state policy aimed at preserving and strengthening traditional Russian spiritual and moral values are aimed at its final overcoming. However, modern reality shows how flawed the memory of the political elites of a number of states that were once part of the Soviet Union is. Fascism has been openly and cynically revived in Ukraine. Its manifestations have become noticeable in the Baltic States. In these countries, criminals who stained their hands with the blood of their compatriots during the last war are proclaimed national heroes. The idea of Ukraine joining NATO, though, faded into the background with the coming to power in the United States. Trump, but not rejected by the globalist left-liberal elites of the West. It reflects the dream of the forces that fought on the side of Nazi Germany about another revenge in the near future.

In this regard, the decisions of the Nuremberg Tribunal are relevant today. They should be remembered by those who are increasingly attempting to review the outcome of the Second World War, seeking to blame the countries and peoples that were treacherously attacked by Nazi Germany and suffered the greatest casualties for igniting the global war.

One of the most important outcomes of the war was the creation of the United Nations, an internationally recognized institution for maintaining stability in the world. After 80 years, they are also trying to reform him with a revanchist bias. This is confirmed by numerous examples of Western countries violating the fundamental principles of the UN Charter, such as the independence and sovereign equality of states, non-interference in their internal affairs, and the peaceful settlement of disputes. The most striking example is the provision of military, intelligence and financial assistance to the neo-fascist Kiev regime. This includes the bombing of Serbia, the occupation of Iraq, and the destruction of statehood in Libya. Blatantly false pretexts and gross manipulation of the UN Security Council mandate were used to pseudo-justify these criminal acts. The result is well-known - human suffering, destruction, and chaos.

The revival of revanchism is an instrument of the policy of the West, which dreams of achieving dominance in world affairs, imposing its exclusivity, and being able to unilaterally use military force. Such approaches contradict the principles on which the United Nations is based and conflict with the objective trend towards the formation of a multipolar world by humanity.

Without hiding the expansionist nature of its policy, the collective West aims to inflict a strategic defeat on Russia. To do this, Western intelligence agencies have launched large-scale subversive activities against our country. In addition, unprecedented economic sanctions are being imposed, designed to intensify protest sentiments in society against the background of a significant deterioration in the quality of life of Russians.

Aware of the threats to the sovereign constitutional order of our Fatherland, the Russian Federation consistently carries out work on the military-patriotic education of young people and the preparation of citizens for military service. Institutions of defense and education, healthcare and culture, sports and youth policy, patriotic public organizations, including DOSAAF, Unarmia, and the Russian Military Historical Society are involved in this work. Representatives of all levels of government - federal, regional and municipal - also pay constant attention to this process and are directly involved in it.

As President of the Russian Federation Vladimir Putin emphasized, "children and youth should know which genuine heroes lived and live next to them, in their families, and should be proud of them, know their work or military path. From an understanding of its importance for our entire country... a sense of belonging to the fate of the Fatherland is born."

The multinational people of Russia have learned the lessons of the Great Patriotic War against fascism well. And today we must do everything to defeat the resurrected Nazism, to prevent its anti-human nature from manifesting itself and its globalist plans to reshape the political map of the world from coming true. This is what determined one of the main objectives of the special military operation in Ukraine.

The triumphant results and dramatic pages of the Great Patriotic War have remained a source of invaluable experience in making important military, political, and managerial decisions for many decades. That Victory made it possible to form a national military strategy that excluded the war of annihilation, including the civilian population, from the arsenal of military operations. The combat skills acquired on the battlefields of the Great Patriotic War are being fully used and improved in the military construction of modern Russia. At the same time, in order to avoid a repeat of the horrors of the war years, it is urgently necessary to protect the country from a variety of external and internal threats.

The national defense system is designed to ensure the solution of this key task, which is aimed at preventing global and regional wars and conflicts, and at implementing strategic deterrence. Today, in the context of the hybrid war unleashed by the West against our great Motherland, state and public security, protection of the country's sovereignty, independence and territorial integrity are fundamentally important.

The foundation of ensuring the security of the Russian Federation is a competitive economy, highly developed science, breakthrough technologies and educated personnel. In an atmosphere of sanctions and unrelenting attempts by the West to achieve Russia's external isolation, our state pays special attention to the issues of scientific and technological security of the country, the implementation of modern innovative industrial and financial and credit policies.

The conceptual framework for ensuring national security, as decided by the Security Council of the Russian Federation, is updated in the main strategic planning document, the National Security Strategy of the Russian Federation, which was adjusted in 2021 for a five-year period. It states the growing geopolitical tension, attempts by the West to undermine the generally accepted norms and principles of international law, and to aggravate the military-political situation near the border of the Russian Federation. The main threats to the security of our country are the encroachment on its state sovereignty, independence and territorial integrity, and the erosion of the traditional spiritual and moral values of the Russian multinational society.

The decision to launch a special military operation in Ukraine to counter these threats and its course have significantly affected the balance of power on a global scale. A global majority of states has emerged that, following Russia's example, are unwilling to put up with the "rules-based order" roughly imposed by the West. The processes of forming a multipolar world have accelerated. The rightness of the position taken by the Russian leadership is reflected in Washington's departure from the globalist left-liberal ideology in foreign policy. However, the United States does not abandon its imperial ambitions and puts harsh political and economic pressure at the forefront, including the use of military force in order to subordinate other countries to American national interests.

At the same time, the European elites, incited and patronized by London and Paris, continue to make loud statements about the need to inflict a strategic defeat on Russia. But not only that. To accompany this annoying hype, programs have been launched in NATO and the European Union aimed at preparing the collective West for a direct military conflict with Russia. These aggressive steps, as well as the continued advance of NATO to the east, to the borders of Russia, are justified by Russophobic fabrications in the best traditions of Goebbels propaganda.

In the current circumstances, the role of the Security Council of the Russian Federation in the organization of state and military administration is increasing.

Let me remind you that the Security Council is the only body that, in accordance with the Constitution (Basic Law) of Russia, is personally headed by the President of the Russian Federation.

The Security Council focuses on:

• issues of domestic and foreign policy of the Russian Federation in the field of national security;
• strategic issues in the state, economic, public, defense, information, environmental and other areas of national security;
• development of effective measures in such areas as public health protection, forecasting, emergency prevention and overcoming their consequences, maintaining stability and law and order.

The decisions of the Security Council of the Russian Federation, which are based on the achievements of the domestic scientific and expert community, the approaches of political and public circles, proposals from professional teams of departments and the opinion of Russian citizens, have determined, among other things, the main directions for the development of the military organization of the state in the medium term. In particular, such measures as the formation and ensuring the effective functioning of mobile, compact, technically equipped Armed Forces of the Russian Federation are envisaged; increasing the social protection of military personnel, law enforcement officers, citizens discharged from military service, and their family members. The Military Doctrine of the Russian Federation, the fundamentals of military-technical policy, and other conceptual documents were approved. They outline programs for creating scientific and technical groundwork for the development of the military-industrial complex, strategically important activities such as maritime, aviation, space, and information, and identify key areas for strengthening the country's defense capability (nuclear deterrence, improving missile and air defense systems, command and control, and the creation and modernization of electronic warfare and electronic component base products).

At meetings of the Security Council of the Russian Federation, priority tasks in the field of military-technical cooperation are being considered, and a set of interrelated measures is being developed to protect the country's population and infrastructure facilities critical to national security from man-made, natural, and terrorist threats.

* * *

The development of world processes 80 years after the Victory forces us to turn again and again to the lessons of the Great Patriotic War. The memory of those terrible events reacts with pain in the hearts of new generations of the Russian people and the fraternal peoples of the former Soviet republics, demanding not to forget the past, not to leave it at the mercy of short-sighted interpreters engaged in rewriting the history of an immortal feat in the interests of demoniacal revanchists.

Their efforts are useless. No one and nothing can belittle the contribution of the Soviet people to Victory. This is our victory, which cannot be hidden by malicious pseudoscientific rhetoric, disguised with lies, deception and vilification, mocking the holy monuments of fallen soldiers. It is the duty of the young generations, who bow their heads before the memory of our fathers, grandfathers and great-grandfathers, to preserve their holy covenant "to defend the Motherland."

The victory in the Great Patriotic War is the embodiment of the inexhaustible genetically inherent spiritual strength of our people, who overcame the most difficult trials that threatened our national historical existence and mobilized all their forces to crush the arrogant invader who subjugated the whole of Europe.

That is why, as a sign of our indelible memory of the events of the Great Patriotic War and the great Victory over Nazism, in gratitude to the veterans, as well as in recognition of the feat of the participants in the special military operation, symbolizing the inseparable continuity of generations, 2025 was declared the Year of Defender of the Fatherland in Russia by decree of the President of the Russian Federation.

Sergei Shoigu (Secretary of the Russian Security Council)