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On May 21-22, 2025, the Scientific Conference “Memory of World War II as a Factor of International Relations” is being held at the Russian State University for the Humanities. The participants discussed a range of issues related to the preservation of historical memory of World War II in the countries and regions of the world and new trends in understanding the historical past. 

The first plenary session examined the narratives about World War II, actualized in modern scientific and political discourses in European countries. The peculiarities of memory politics in the victorious and defeated states, including countries outside the European theater of military operations, and the influence of the world conflict on the processes of national identity formation and on the modern post-colonial discourse were analyzed.

The report by Irina Semenenko was devoted to the revision of historical narratives and metamorphoses of memory politics in contemporary Europe. The agenda of historical policy promoted at the level of the European Union was considered, as well as the practices of commemoration in those European countries that were on the side of the defeated or were not among the winners – Italy, Spain, Austria. Special attention was also paid to the “forgotten soldiers” of the former colonies who took part in military actions and the modern interpretation of this experience, which contributed to liberation from colonial dependence. Based on the results, a conclusion was made about the phenomenon of “divided memory” in those societies where there was no demand for understanding the experience of the difficult past associated with the legacy of fascism and colonialism.