WW2 veterans are honored in Almaty

Almaty, September 24, 2009 (Khabar) - A meeting of WW2 veterans devoted to the 65th anniversary of liberation of Ukraine and Belarus from Nazi troops has taken place in Almaty. Thousands of Kazakhstan’s soldiers contributed to the liberation of those countries.

Valeriy Gulnitskiy, WW2 veteran:
- I feel hatred to any kind of war but if anyone dares to attack my country I will be in the front line to show the enemy what the hell of war means.

Valeriy Gulnitskiy wrote this poem about his life. When the Nazi troops occupied Minsk, he alongside his parents and a younger brother tried to escape to Moscow. The family was parted by a bombing. 11-year old Viktor found himself in the occupied city. For a long time, he was serving in a partisan squad. Ahead of the liberation of Belarus, they were found by the Gestapo. Having survived, Viktor found his relatives in Kazakhstan. For 60 years now, the professor has worked for his second homeland.

Valeriy Gulnitskiy, WW2 veteran:
- Kazakhstan’s residents were defending Moscow and liberated Belarus. We have a strong friendship. I want the friendship between Kazakhstan, Belarus and Ukraine to become even stronger.

Every third WW2 veteran from Kazakhstan was fighting for the liberation of Ukraine and Belarus, they showed their bravery in the Bagration military operation resulting in 88 of Kazakhstan’s soldiers being awarded the Hero of the Soviet Union medal. Veterans say their brotherhood is sealed by blood. For bravery and honour, over 3 thousand Kazakhstan’s soldiers who participated in the liberation of Ukraine and Belarus will be awarded with anniversary medals.