“We must not forget, and we must build the future together”. These were the words of Foreign Minister Paolo Gentiloni, who, with his German colleague Frank Walter Steinmeier, opened the Documentation Centre on the Padule di Fucecchio Massacre, in which 175 civilians were killed by Nazi troops on 23 August 1944.
“Our shared memory is a door to the future, starting with the management of migrant flows towards Europe”, added Minister Gentiloni. “Once again, in Europe, our two countries can express a common sentiment that says ‘No’ to those who deal in fear and ‘No’ to the spread of hatred. The flag of the European Union makes it possible to count on a future in which tragic and ignoble deeds like the massacre of August 1944 cannot be repeated. Italy and Germany, united in cultivating remembrance, have a historic responsibility to defend the values that safeguard peace”.