Gusakov said that the memory of the Great Patriotic War is the basis of the Belarusian ideology

Gusakov stressed that it is the duty of the present generations to preserve the truth about the war and remembrance of the heroes. He noted the large-scale work to study the feat of the Soviet people carried out by the Department of Humanities and Arts of the Academy of Sciences in co-operation with government agencies, educational institutions, archives, libraries and scholars from CIS countries.

Gusakow reminded of the decisive role of the Soviet Union and the Red Army in defeating Nazi Germany, noting the significant contribution of Belarusians and natives of the republic. He stressed that 1.3 million Belarusians fought at the fronts, more than 375 thousand participated in the guerrilla movement, and 70 thousand – in the clandestine fight. More than 450 Belarusians and natives of the republic were honoured with the title of Hero of the Soviet Union.

The academician also cited examples of outstanding military leaders – natives of Belarus, who made a great contribution to the victory, including Army General Alexei Antonov, Marshal of the Soviet Union Konstantin Rokossovsky, Army General Vasily Sokolovsky and Marshal of the Soviet Union Ivan Yakubovsky.

The conference was organised by the National Academy of Sciences as well as the Institute of History, the Ministry of Defence and the Ministry of Education.