Russia has tried to assert a monopoly for itself in the victory over Nazism in WWII. But what role did Ukrainians and other nations of the former USSR play in this victory? What is the role of 1945 in Russia's current ideology? How has it influenced the Russian invasion of Ukraine? What are the major elements of the Ukrainian political identity that explain the country's resistance today? Has Russia been defeated in wars in the past? Will Russian defeat today be good for Russia itself? – Ukrainian philosopher and journalist, chief editor of UkraineWorld.org Volodymyr Yermolenko, speaks to a famous Ukrainian historian Serhii Plokhii, Director of the Harvard Ukrainian Research Institute and Mykhailo S. Hrushevs'kyi Professor of Ukrainian History at Harvard University. This episode is made by UkraineWorld in partnership with EUvsDisinfo, an EU project aimed at increasing public awareness and understanding of the Kremlin’s disinformation operations, and to help citizens in Europe and beyond develop resistance to digital disinformation and media manipulation. UkraineWorld is brought to you by Internews Ukraine, a Ukrainian media NGO. “Thinking in Dark Times” is a podcast series by UkraineWorld. This series seeks to make Ukraine and the current war a focal point of our common reflection about the world’s present, past, and future. We try to see the light through and despite the current darkness. Support us at patreon.com/ukraineworld