On 8 and 9 May 2025, we celebrate the 80th anniversary of the end of the Second World War. That war brought untold suffering and destruction to hundreds of millions of people in Europe and far beyond.
As the voice of older people in Europe, AGE Platform Europe reminds everyone that a whole generation of today’s older people was born during this war or in the post-war period. They experienced the war’s terrible effects as children and young people and yet they spent years of their lives rebuilding their countries.
These old people have seen and felt intensely what war and crimes against humanity mean, regardless of whether they grew up in the West or the East of Europe and whether they experienced oppression or were able to develop freely.
When today we look back on the past 80 years, we are deeply grateful that courageous women and men have worked tirelessly for a united Europe, transcending nationalism and forging shared democratic values to pave the way for a long period of regional stability and cooperation among the European nations, for peace and security.
We must remember that peace, democracy and freedom are not granted to us once and forever. They have to be supported and defended every day, otherwise they will break. We must realise that this Europe of ours is under threat in many ways. Illiberal forces are gaining influence, climate change is exacerbating emergencies in many regions and wars across the world affect us all.
Through our shared memories, we cannot but express our concern regarding the ongoing and continuing wars around the world, calling for a stop to the killing of human beings and to respect human rights and humanitarian law. We express our solidarity with people of all ages affected by armed conflicts and call for action to ensure that people everywhere can live in reliable peace.
AGE Platform Europe is committed to the European values of human dignity and equality, freedom, democracy, and the rule of law. We are striving for a ‘Europe for All Ages’ living together in peace and prosperity. As an organisation representing older people, we are particularly committed to their human rights and well-being and urge that people of all ages in vulnerable situations are not left behind.
The anniversary of the end of the Second World War is an occasion for us to call for the strengthening of democratic forces in Europe. We ask them to endorse our European values and not to let up in our efforts to work for a Europe capable of responding to new challenges, in which all people can enjoy equal rights and live in peace.
AGE Platform Europe
