Overview
- Italian President Sergio Mattarella used the Bundestag ceremony to champion multilateral cooperation and warn against “imitators of dark times,” citing wars in Ukraine, Gaza and Sudan.
- Bundestag President Julia Klöckner said remembrance must translate into daily action to protect peace and democracy, after leaders laid wreaths at the Neue Wache.
- President Frank‑Walter Steinmeier’s Totengedenken included, for the first time, people persecuted for gender or sexual identity under Nazi rule and police officers killed on duty.
- Volksbund chief Wolfgang Schneiderhan warned of a structural shortfall despite a one‑time €2.5 million federal boost, noting falling donations, rising costs and an investment backlog above €20 million.
- Local reports described shrinking attendance and debates over decentralized ceremonies, even as schools and youth groups were enlisted to keep the memory work relevant.