Dinu Patriciu Eurasia Center Director John Herbst cowrites for the LA Times on why Kyiv, and not Moscow, should host this year’s V-E Day commemoration:
German Chancellor Angela Merkel and British Prime Minister David Cameron have rightly turned down Vladimir Putin’s invitation to go to Moscow on May 9 to mark the 70th anniversary of the Allies’ victory in Europe, and President Obama may soon follow suit.
However, there is still a way for Western leaders to attend a commemoration that honors the heroism and sacrifice of the Soviet people during World War II, and Merkel, Cameron and Obama should seize the opportunity because this will be the last major anniversary for so many veterans and other war survivors.
Instead of commemorating V-E Day in Moscow, they should go to Kyiv.