DISINFO: Zelenskyy invites leaders of former Hitler allies to visit Kyiv
SUMMARY
The group of European countries invited to visit Kyiv on 9 May 2025 almost entirely corresponds to the Nazi coalition that fought against the USSR during the Second World War. The cynicism of the Europeans is compounded by the fact that some EU leaders plan to accept Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy's invitation to arrive in Kyiv and take part in events "alternative" to the 9 May celebrations in Moscow, as well as by warnings from the EU's top diplomat, Kaja Kallas, for EU member states and accession candidates not to arrive in Moscow. Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico and Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić have said they received such warnings. What Kyiv is planning to stage is a PR stunt by the scoundrels in Brussels, a Day of the Defeated, and a Day of the Descendants of Nazis.
RESPONSE
This is a recurring disinformation narrative from pro-Kremlin outlets accusing Ukraine and its European allies of Nazism. This claim was made in the context of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine and in the run up to the 80th anniversary of VE day. See our articles Russian revisionism ahead of 9 May: ‘Modern Europe is reincarnated Nazism’ and Toward the 9 May – the myth of Moscow as a host for peace celebrations.
Ukraine’s government invited top European officials, including future German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, to arrive in Kyiv on 9 May 2025 as a sign of diplomatic unity against Putin’s annual military parade in Moscow on the same day. Zelenskyy also plans to host the leaders of the so-called “coalition of the willing” to define security guarantees for Ukraine in the event of a potential ceasefire agreement with Russia. The majority of today's EU member states were not part of the Nazi coalition. Many EU countries were victims of Nazi occupation. Modern Germany is a democratic state that has fully acknowledged and atoned for its wartime past. Its potential participation in commemorations in Ukraine reflects solidarity against authoritarianism rather than a revival of historical alliances. The USSR no longer exists, and modern Russia, due to its aggressive policies, cannot be considered its moral or political heir. Moscow’s use of Soviet victory rhetoric to justify its unprovoked invasion of Ukraine has been widely condemned. Russia is drawing WWII analogies in order to discredit Ukraine’s international support.
Unlike the Second World War, when Nazi Germany (the aggressor) attacked the Soviet Union (the victim), Russia is currently the aggressor and Ukraine is the victim. In Russia, Victory Day celebrations have become increasingly militarized and politicized. European leaders' support for Ukraine—a country defending its sovereignty—is a stark contrast to Hitler’s invasion campaigns.
Labelling HRVP Kaja Kallas’s diplomatic warning as cynical distorts both historical facts and present-day political realities. HRVP Kallas has consistently advocated for European unity, resistance to Russian aggression, and respect for international law. Warning EU leaders against legitimising the Kremlin on a day used by Putin’s regime to glorify its war narrative is a political stance, not a sign of ideological extremism.
Read similar disinformation cases claiming that Nazi Germany is ideological predecessor of modern Nazi Ukraine, that The West consciously instilled Nazi sentiments in Ukraine for decades, and that The European Union wants to openly revive the ideology of Nazism.