Day of the end of the war

On September 3, we mark the end of World War II. In China and Russia, it is considered to be the day of the end of the war – September 2. At the same time, in Russia it is customary to arrange a holiday – May 9. At the same time, there are still disputes not only about which day the world should celebrate the end of World War II, but also about which country made the greatest contribution to the end of the war.

In fact, World War II officially ended on September 2, 1945, when Japan officially signed the Act of Unconditional Surrender. In many countries, Victory Day over Japan is scheduled for September 2. Recently, however, China and Russia have shown noticeable activity in this matter, postponing this day to September 3.
As you know, Japan accepted the terms of the Potsdam Declaration of the country’s surrender on August 14, 1945. She notified the coalition countries about this. On August 15, in a radio speech, Emperor Akihito announced the end of the war and hostilities to the Japanese people. However, the then Soviet Union, which declared war on Japan on August 9, continued military operations against it after August 15 and fought them until September 4.
On September 2, in Tokyo Bay, on the deck of the American battleship Missouri, the Act of Japan’s Unconditional Surrender was officially signed. In America, this day is established as “Victory Day over Japan” (VJ Day).
In China, initially since 1946, September 3 was celebrated as the day of victory in the war of resistance to Japan. After the nationalist government of the Republic of China, the Kuomintang, was defeated in the fight against the Chinese Communist Party and fled to Taiwan, September 3 was celebrated there as the day of the armed forces.
When the People’s Republic of China was formed in 1949 under the leadership of the Chinese Communist Party, the day of victory in the Japanese War of Resistance was celebrated on August 15th. However, in 1951, the holiday was postponed to September 3. In preparation for the 70th anniversary of the end of World War II in 2014, China named September 3 “The Day of the Victory of the Chinese People in the War of Resistance. Japan. “The next year, 2015, this date was designated as” The Day of the Victory of the Chinese People in the War of Resistance to Japan, as well as the Day of the 70th Anniversary of Victory in the War against World Fascism. ” a military parade was held.This was unusual from the point of view of the practice of official events in China, where before that military parades were held only on the day of the formation of the PRC (October 1). Apparently, in this way China behaved “face to face” with Russia, which in 2015 held a military parade in Moscow in honor of the 70th anniversary of the victory over Germany.

What about Russia? She reschedules Victory Day over Japan from September 2 to 3.

In the Soviet Union and Russia, throughout the post-war period, Victory Day over Japan was celebrated on September 2. In 2010, the Russian government, by its official decree, declared September 2 the “Day of the end of the world war.” II “. However, in April of this year, a new amendment to the Russian Constitution was adopted, according to which the “Day of the end of World War II” was postponed to September 3. Many observers believe that the aspirations and messages of the war veterans have played a role. this is.
However, a big misunderstanding among veterans, historians and citizens of the most affected countries is caused not by the official date of the end of the deadliest war in the history of mankind, but by the assessment of the contribution of various peoples. It is no secret that the Soviet Union suffered the greatest losses. It is no secret that Poland suffered its first major losses. It’s no secret that the Nazis committed the most atrocious atrocities in the cities and villages of Ukraine. All this should be a subject of discussion and exclusion of possible speculations “on the topic” … and not on September 2 or 3.