Georgia celebrates WWII victory day

On May 9 Georgia is celebrating World War II Victory Daycommemorating the surrender of Nazi Germany in 1945.

The surrender document was signed in Berlin, Germany in the late evening on May 8, 1945, which was early morning on May 9 in Eastern European time. Consequently, Victory Day is celebrated today in Georgia while countries in Western Europe mark the occasion annually on May 8.

Today WWII veterans gathered at Vake Park to commemorate the day and lay wreaths at the memorial of the Unknown Soldiers who served in Georgia’s Armed Forces. Government officials also visited the memorial.

PM Giorgi Kvirikashvili addresses WWII veterans in the occasion: "We are obliged to praise their heroism. They are very valuable people who sacrificed their lives for their homeland. Georgia has paid a great sacrifice – over 300,000 people did not return from the WWII. We know the names of some of the heroes, but some of them stayed unknown. Today we are honoring everyone who sacrificed their lives for the country. I wish peace and stable development for Georgia. Stability is a very valuable and we should all take care of it," PM Kvirikashvili said.

Photo story: Heroes of WWII

Up to 700,000 Georgians served in WWII and nearly 400,000 died, according to the numbers released by the State Service of Veterans Affairs of Georgia. 224,000 received different awards while 164 were given the title of hero.

As the Speaker of the Parliament Irakli Kobakhidze said today, lawmakers are ready to discuss any initiative which would ensure better living conditions for veterans.

"It is our duty to create decent conditions for each veteran and everything is being done for this purpose," Kobakhidze said.

President of Georgia Giorgi Margvelashvili has awarded the veterans of WWII who are 100-year-old or more with the medals of honour. 

The number of living veterans decreases year by year in Georgia. According to the State Service of Veterans Affairs data 769 WWII veterans were registered last year.