Last evening a solemn departure ceremony of the “Memory Train” took place at the Moscow Belorussky railway station. This year 200 kids from CIS countries will take part in the commemorative events dedicated to the beginning of the Great Patriotic war.

In 2022 the train departed for the first time on the initiative of the Chairman of the Council of the Republic of the National Assembly of Belarus Natalya Kochanova and Speaker of the Federation Council of the Federal Assembly of Russia Valentina Matvienko. From 2023 the Standing committee of the Union State is responsible for scheduling the train’s routes.

In 2024 the number of participating countries gradually increased. If the first train had participants only from Belarus and Russia, this year among the honored passengers are representatives from 8 countries: Belarus, Russia, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan. Our country is represented by the winners of national and regional Olympiads, of thematic competitions dedicated to the Great Patriotic war as well as activists and participants of a large-scale military-patriotic projects.

During the two-week itinerary the train will stop in 14 towns of Belarus and Russia linked with the military exploits of their great-grandfathers. The first stop is Brest Fortress. In Brest, the participants will enjoy excursions, visit museums and reconstructions of the events of the Great Patriotic war.

Natalia Kochanova will give parting words for the participants. During the open dialogue with Mrs. Kochanova, the guys will share their expectations and ask bothering-them questions. Then - an introductory program with Brest and participation in a night-time requiem meeting dedicated to the Day of National Remembrance of the Victims of the Great Patriotic War and the genocide of the Belarusian people. In Grodno, young people will enjoy excursions to learn the history of the city. In terms of visiting, there are iconic places and industrial giants of the country.

According to the first secretary of the Central Committee of the Belarusian Republican Youth Union, this year new cities will appear along the route of the “Memory Train”. “There are a lot of facilities that the guys will be visiting for the first time. These are, first of all, the Polotsk Spaso-Euphrosyne Monastery, the memorial complex of victims of fascism “Peski”, and the Polotsk Cadet School,” said Alexander Lukyanov.

In 2025 the organizers want passengers from 15 countries because participation of the former Soviet countries is going to be symbolic for the 80th Victory anniversary.