U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken declares the need to remind of the Babyn Yar tragedy and pledge to act so that history is not repeated.
“On this anniversary, we honor the memory of all those who lost in Babyn Yar, recommit ourselves ensuring that their full history is told, and pledge to act, every day, so that history is not repeated,” Blinken said in his speech, recorded on the anniversary of the Babyn Yar tragedy.
The text of the speech was released by the U.S. Embassy in Ukraine on October 6.
The U.S. Secretary of State recalled the circumstances of the tragedy and attempts to silence it in subsequent years. He also spoke about the arrival of his stepfather Samuel Pisar as part of the U.S. delegation to Kyiv in 1971, noting the anti-Semitism of the representatives of the Soviet delegation. According to Blinken, the trip to Babyn Yar, which the U.S. delegation insisted on, could considerably soften the tone of the dialogue, since “one of the most powerful ways to conquer hatred is to show people what it leads – its consequences.”
