"Today, more than ever, we must be united against hatred and work for peace. This is the legacy we must leave to future generations,” said President Mai Sandu, who participated in the ceremony held to celebrate the 80th anniversary of the liberation of the Auschwitz-Birkenau concentration and extermination camp, IPN reports.

The event in Poland brought together more than 30 world leaders, who paid tribute to the victims of the Holocaust. President Sandu stressed the importance of keeping the memory of those events alive in order to prevent the repetition of such horrors.

"At Auschwitz-Birkenau, we felt the burden of history and our duty to the future. We stepped into a place where more than a million lives were cut short because of hatred and lack of humanity. 80 years after the liberation of this horror camp, let us not allow these terrible things to be forgotten or denied. Let's promote tolerance, respect and care for those around us. Let's build a better world where hatred has no place," noted the head of state.

The Auschwitz-Birkenau camp was the largest concentration and extermination camp built by the Nazi regime, where more than a million people lost their lives. The overwhelming majority of the victims were Jews, but among those exterminated were also Poles, Roma and people of other nationalities.

Today, Auschwitz remains a symbol of the Holocaust and the atrocities committed by the Nazis during World War II. January 27 was designated the International Holocaust Remembrance Day by the United Nations in 2005.