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Forensic investigators in Ukraine are struggling to identify the remains of thousands of soldiers that lie dead along the battle fronts. Their names, once discovered, will be added to the tens of thousands of Ukrainians – civilians and soldiers alike – known to have been killed by Russian troops, attack drones and missiles.
More deaths will come, as there is no sign of any immediate end to the fighting. Yet, institutions, government officials and people themselves are already contemplating how to memorialize the fallen in this latest European war.
Kerry Whigham is a scholar of public memory, genocide and mass atrocity prevention at Binghamton University, State University of New York.
Whigham delves into the deep history of war memorials – both around the world and in Ukraine itself, a country with its fair share of tragedy. He explains how memorials went from glorifications to solemn depictions of sacrifice, and then to abstract works recognizing the 20th century’s worst mass crimes.
He describes Ukraine’s current push-pull situation, seeking to memorialize the pain already suffered while grappling with the uncertainty of what lies ahead. “Ukrainians are understandably ready to move forward and deal with the repercussions of this horrific violence. But building a memorial will not, in itself, mark the end of the conflict,” Whigham writes.
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Matt Williams
Senior International Editor
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A woman looks at a makeshift memorial for fallen soldiers on Independence Square in Kyiv, Ukraine, on July 9, 2025.
AP Photo/Efrem Lukatsky
Kerry Whigham, Binghamton University, State University of New York
Human society has marked collective dead for millennia. Such monuments have changed with the evolving nature of conflict, something Ukraine is now weighing.
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