Rector Lenar Safin’s address on Victory Day

Dear veterans, colleagues, teachers and students! Dear friends!

With all my heart I congratulate you on the great holiday – Victory Day!

May 9 will always remain in our memory as a symbol of courage, steadfastness and unparalleled feat of the Soviet people.

On this day we bow our heads in gratitude to those who defended the freedom and independence of our Motherland with weapons in their hands, who worked on the home front, bringing victory closer, and who kept faith in a bright future even in the most difficult years.

Kazan at that time joined the colossal effort. Our factories supplied the Soviet army with airplanes, hospitals received the wounded, and Kazan University did not stop training personnel, conducted scientific research – mostly oriented to the needs of the front.

We are proud of our staff and students, who during the Great Patriotic War made an invaluable contribution to the common cause of Victory.

Today we continue their path, preserving their memory through scientific research, educational projects and patriotic initiatives. After all, every year there are fewer and fewer witnesses of those heroic events, and it is our duty to keep the truth about the war, to pass it on to new generations, to educate young people in the spirit of respect for history and love for the Fatherland, as they are the heirs of the winners and are certainly worthy of the glory of their ancestors.

Friends, this sacred date for all of us brings joy, pride, pain and sorrow at the same time, and it should not disappear from the memory of the people. Only the lessons of the past remind us that the world is fragile, it must be appreciated and protected.

Love your Motherland, be healthy and happy, and let this holiday fill your hearts with light!

Eternal glory to the heroes! Eternal memory to the fallen! Happy Great Victory Day!