Immortal Regiment Movement Celebrating WWII Victory Goes Truly Global

The Immortal Regiment movement, established in Russia to honor the Great Patriotic War veterans, is becoming truly global, with enthusiasts in Estonia, Germany, Norway and the United States expected to hold marches on the Victory Day in 2015.

The campaign, launched in the Russian city of Tomsk in 2012, instantly turned into a nationwide event. In 2013, more than 200,000 people took part in the marches held in Belarus, Israel, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia and Ukraine. The participants carried photos of their late relatives, who fought in the war.

All other the globe "these events are organized by our fellow countrymen, who highlight the importance of the campaign against the backdrop that in certain countries some try to rewrite history and distort facts relating to the war," said Sergey Kolotovkin, one of coordinators of the Immortal Regiment march in Tomsk.

For the first time the march will be held in Berlin. "The event is primarily essential for the youth. … It is important to me, a mother of two children, that my kids do not become the victims of propaganda or crazy alternative history," said Yana Zaugarova, a coordinator of the Immortal Regiment march in the German capital.

"Our grandfathers and grandmothers did the impossible. We have to pass the memory of them to our children and grandchildren. This is especially true of the foreign lands, where preserving your national values can be hard," she added.

The Immortal Regiment marches are expected to be held on May 9 in New York and possibly other US cities. Norwegian cities, including Oslo, Bergen, Trondheim, etc., will see similar events on the Victory Day.