I found this collage here. The text is Ukrainian. The author goes by vaenn. Please click to enlarge.
Maryxmas’ journal, by the way, is one of the most important contributions to the Ukrainian blogosphere, in my not-so-humble opinion. She’s not celebrating today. She feels sorry for both “those who lived to see Victory, and those who did not live.”
I, on the other hand, do want to celebrate, like I used to with my grandfather, Major General Pyotr Pavlovich Nistratov.
Natalia A. 
This question of “victory” is one of the most complicated heritage of the USSR to Eastern Europe, from Tallinn to Kiev.
It is true that the USSR brought a decisive contribution to the Victory on the awfull nazi regime.
But it is also the victory of a totalitarism over another one.
Liberation / occupation ? This will be a ghost in the euro-russian relationship for the century to come …
I see it first and foremost as a victory for those who suffered horribly. My kin.
I don’t have any illusions over the supposed goodness of the Soviet Empire – but I do honour those who had their lives snatched and twisted, and then continued, and gave birth to my parents’ generation, and are now dying among the ruins.
My Ukrainian great-grandfather fought with the Soviets. As did the Russian side of my family. Both are equal in my eyes.
Do some Ukrainnian fought on the other side? I know better the history of the Baltic States and in those States, people fought on both sides, sure in each of them that it was the one preserving their independance…
A lot of people were initially overjoyed when the Nazis rolled into Ukraine, and then the carnage started. There is a small party now pressing to be commemorated, but they maintain that they fought both against Soviet Russia & the Nazis (not really sure about that one – although I bet they all have different experiences).
Most of the initial leaders of the Ukrainians collaborators were executed in Kiev, according to the book “Babii Yar.”
Some people, usually those who weren’t expressly “political,” collaborated specifically when it came to rounding up the Jews – as they were promised their houses and belongings.
My grandmother recalls that a Canadian recently took over a house in her home village. He was born in Canada to Ukrainian parents. He has no idea that his parents were responsible for the deaths of at least two Jewish families, as well as the plundering of their belongings. My grandmother remembers them well, but most of the other people who remember are now dead.
Interesting…
Was there some kind of “nationalist government” under the Nazis’ rule? Because, as far as I know, there was one in Belarus, using all the symbols of Independant Belarus; So, now, the nationalists in Belarus are trying to get rid of Lukashenko but this one, as well as the Russians, are always send them back to this period of their history so all the historic heritage of the Grand Duchy of Lithuany is totally discredited.
Is there a jewish community left in Ukraine? because as far as I know, there is a dream of revival in Vilnius, where more tha 50% of inhabitants were jewish before the war.
Yeah, there are Jews in Ukraine. I don’t know what the statistics on them are, though.
I also don’t know much about the government under Nazi rule – except for the fact that everyone was really excited for a bit, and then they were all blown to hell.
My great uncle is Jewish, and he managed to survive Babii Yar – when his dying mother covered him with her body. One of his kids still lives in Kiev, as does his ex-wife. He himself lives in Germany now (oh sweet irony), and loves it.
Maybe i’ll learn more when i arrive to that part of my book, i’ll update you 🙂
Giis…..you know Jews fought in the Soviet Army too…like my granddaddy. in the ukraine.
I highly recommend…and Natalia is going to laugh, but I can’t help it: Vasily Grossman. I would definetly read “A Writer at War: A Soviet Journalist with the Red Army, 1941-1945” and if you have a lot of time “Life and Fate.”
Yes, many people advised me those books, but for now, I’m fighting with my master thesis and huuuuuundreds of interviews of Latvians …
So this summer, I’ll take this one then, lying on the baltic shore…
On my own I advise Primo Levi, “If he’s a man”
I wrote a lovely little thesis on Grossman way back when we were in college. By the end I was calling him Vasya and showing Natasha pictures of him with his shirt off. Rough!
Then I need to read the book for sure! On my own I was fascinated by pictures of Stakanov we had in the west in our history books…
Here’s another book that my friend, who works in publishing, recommended:
Nazi Empire-Building and the Holocaust in Ukraine, by Wendy Lower
One last one, “Ivan’s War” by Catherine Merridale. Haven’t read it, but it supposedly very nice.
then i’ll become a specialist ! I’m now finishing my book on Ukraine history and I keep other books for the summer. Are you ukranian as well anna? from where?
My father is from Odessa but I was born here in the States. Our family is ethnically Jewish though and speaks Russian, so we wouldn’t consider ourselves Ukrainian.
You would consider yourself as Russians then?
If you are a reader of this site, have the characteristic ignorance of WWII Eastern Front history found outside of the former USSR (and often within it!), and you want to find out more, check out the iremember.ru website. It has lots of interviews with Soviet survivors of the war. Most of these are in Russian, but there are quite a few in English and in other languages. The website creators have published about 9 survivors’ memoirs in English so far, of which I’ve read three. They underscore the reality of the “Ostkrieg”‘s being not only the largest, but the grimmest, Second World War battlefront.
In Russia, my family is Jewish. In the States, we’re Russian.
Eeew Anna, you’re gross.