On October 21, 2026, an international conference “Memory of the Holocaust: Lessons from the Past for the Future” was held in Odessa. The event was dedicated to the 35th anniversary of the All-Ukrainian Association of Jews – former prisoners of ghettos and Nazi concentration camps. In the city, which is currently under Russian shelling, Holocaust survivors, government representatives, diplomats, historians, and international experts gathered.
Author: Elena Gunko
The conference combined discussions on Nazi crimes with issues of modern security, anti-Semitism, and responsibility for military aggression. A special place was given to the testimonies of people who survived persecution during World War II and now find themselves witnesses to the war in Ukraine again.
Roman Shvartsman and 35 years of struggle for historical memory
One of the central participants was Roman Shvartsman — chairman of the Odessa Regional Association of Former Prisoners of Ghettos and Nazi Concentration Camps. As a child, he survived the Bershad ghetto in the territory of present-day Vinnytsia region, and later dedicated decades to preserving Holocaust testimonies.
In January 2025, Shvartsman addressed the German Bundestag with the words: “In those times, Hitler tried to kill me because I am Jewish. Now Putin is trying to kill me because I am Ukrainian.” NANews detailed this speech and the reaction of German politicians. His testimony became one of the conceptual foundations of the current conference in Odessa.
Founded in 1991, the association supports former prisoners, preserves memories, historical documents, and commemorates the deceased. This work gained special significance after decades of Soviet policy, where Jewish victims of Nazi crimes were often mentioned only as anonymous “peaceful citizens.”
For Odessa, this history is particularly painful. In October 1941, on the territory of the powder depots in the area of Lustdorf Road, the occupiers killed tens of thousands of people, mostly Jews. Roman Shvartsman reminded conference participants of the 25,000 dead. Today, preserving their names and fates remains one of the tasks of the city’s Jewish organizations.
Israel, Germany, and international responsibility
The conference was attended by representatives of Ukrainian authorities, the diplomatic corps, scientific institutions, and Jewish organizations. Among the invited guests was Eyal Pevzner, head of the Israeli “Nativ” representation in Odessa. “Nativ” is an Israeli state structure working, in particular, with Jewish communities of the former USSR and issues of repatriation.
Germany was represented by former Bundestag deputy, co-founder of the Center for Liberal Modernity Marie-Luise Beck, and Goethe-Institut representative Jakob Ratzek. The governing mayor of Berlin, Kai Wegner, addressed the participants via video link. The German side emphasized the importance of historical responsibility for Nazi crimes and the need to preserve the memory of the victims.
Participants in the scientific discussions, including historians Anatoly Podolsky, Vitaly Chernoivanenko, and Sergey Girik, discussed national identity, countering anti-Semitism, and ways to pass on historical knowledge to future generations. Lawyers and international law specialists separately examined the legacy of the Nuremberg Trials and the issue of responsibility for modern international crimes.
For Israeli society, these issues are of direct importance. The memory of Jewish communities in Ukraine is an important part of Holocaust history, and preserving testimonies of the deceased unites researchers and families on both sides of the border. In September 2026, a ceremony in memory of the victims of Babi Yar was held at Jerusalem’s ‘Yad Vashem’, which was also reported by NANews Israel News Nikk.Agency.
Memorial ‘Against Oblivion’: Memory that must be preserved
One of the practical issues of the conference was the fate of the future memorial ‘Against Oblivion’ on Lustdorf Road, 27. The project, developed by Odessa and German specialists, provides for the installation of nine corten steel steles in the shape of tongues of flame. The composition also includes the Star of David and the names of the deceased Jews.
According to the organizers, Germany had previously allocated one million euros for the construction of the memorial. However, after the start of the full-scale Russian invasion in 2022, these funds were redirected, in agreement with partners, to support the civilian population and the defense of Odessa. The implementation of the memorial project is planned to resume after the war ends with Ukraine’s victory.
The conference once again raised the question of how to preserve the testimonies of the generation that survived the Holocaust. For Odessa, this is connected with specific sites of mass killings, for Israel — with the memory of Jewish communities in Ukraine and the fates of families whose history began long before the creation of the State of Israel.
The editorial board of NANews received informational materials from the conference’s organizing committee. The full video recording of the event is available on YouTube.