Germany: 'Brotherhood and peace' remembered on Elbe Day's 70th anniversary

Russian Ambassador to Germany Vladimir Grinin called for the spirit of "brotherhood and peace" to be remembered in Torgau, Saturday, during the 70th anniversary of Elbe Day, an event regarded by some as marking the start of the end of World War II. Grinin noted that this day should be marked as a victory of humanity over barbarity rather than the victory of one coalition over the other or the defeat of the Germans. "We must always remind of this legacy as well as the other legacy of the soldiers of the anti-Hitler coalition, who met at the Elbe bank back then - no more war," Grinin concluded. Soldiers of 69th division of the US infantry and the 58th Soviet Army division met in Torgau on April 25 in 1945 and shook hands on the destroyed Elbe bridge. The famous handshake of William Robertson and Alexander Silwaschko has become symbolic of a crucial step towards the eventual end of World War II.