Declaration by the High Representative, Federica Mogherini, on behalf of the European Union, on the occasion of the 25th commemoration of the genocide against the Tutsi in Rwanda

On the International Day of Reflection on the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi in Rwanda, we join in the commemoration and pay tribute to more than 800 000 men, women and children who lost their lives in inhuman and deliberate atrocities. We express our solidarity with the families and friends whose loss endures today.

25 years later Rwanda is in many ways a transformed country thanks to the determination of the people of Rwanda to rebuild both their lives and their country, and to pursue national reconciliation. In these ongoing efforts, the Rwandan people deserve the continued support and solidarity of the international community.

These acts of remembrance provide also an opportunity to reflect on the lessons of the past, for the region and the world at large, at a moment in which upholding universal values, ensuring accountability and promoting effective multilateralism are more relevant than ever. We can never accept the tolerance of the unacceptable and we share the responsibility to protect populations from atrocity crimes. In the common fight against the forces of hate, against the regression of the values of tolerance and solidarity, the EU will along with our international partners, continue to fully play its role in the work towards a stable rules-based global order.

The Candidate Countries Turkey, Montenegro*, Serbia* and Albania*, the country of the Stabilisation and Association Process and potential candidate Bosnia and Herzegovina, and the EFTA countries Iceland and Norway, members of the European Economic Area, as well as Ukraine, the Republic of Moldova and Armenia align themselves with this declaration.

*Montenegro, Serbia and Albania continue to be part of the Stabilisation and Association Process.