“There are pages in our history that are very painful to recall; still, they cannot be forgotten. Crimes that prove that violence and cynicism have no limits. Disasters that a normal person will not wish even on his enemies. Tragedies so great that humanity has not yet invented words to describe the pain that Ukrainians have experienced. Today we honor the memory of the victims of the Holodomor, a crime of genocide committed by the totalitarian Stalinist regime against our people, the people of Ukraine. …
“However, the huge volume of facts and evidence still gives no answer to the simple question either to the mind or to the heart: For what? How can a thought of eliminating the whole nation emerge? How can one take away the last crumb of bread and the last crumb of hope. Hope that you or at least your children will live until the next morning. …
“We are Ukrainians. And we can do everything. But there are two things we can never do. We cannot forget it. And we cannot forgive it. Today, Ukraine and the entire civilized world pray for the innocent victims of this horrific crime against our people. Today, Ukrainians will light candles in their windows. Let them warm the souls of all the deceased. Eternal memory to them.”
– President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, speaking on November 23 in Kyiv at a remembrance of the victims of the Holodomor of 1932-1933, as cited on the website of the Presidential Office of Ukraine.