“Their experience reminds us that war’s true cost extends beyond battlefields, touching every aspect of life – a tragedy all-too vividly demonstrated by conflicts around the world today,” he observed.

Acknowledging Hiroshima and Nagasaki

The King also remembered the victims of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, where atomic bombings in August 1945 killed more than 200,000 people. “But in recalling so much suffering, we must not lose sight of how great was the cause and how sweet the victory,” he said.

Charles highlighted the cooperation between nations, faiths, and cultures during the war: “Together they proved that, in times of war and in times of peace, the greatest weapons of all are not the arms you bear, but the arms you link.”

He concluded with a tribute to families of veterans: “Please know that the courage and camaraderie displayed in humanity’s darkest hour is a flame that shall blaze for eternity – a beacon that honours our past and guides our future.”

Commemorations in the UK

Events marking the anniversary began Thursday with a sunset ceremony at the Memorial Gates in London, including a lightshow and stories projected onto the gates. Lord Boateng laid a wreath on behalf of the King.

At dawn Friday, bagpipers played laments at the National Memorial Arboretum and Edinburgh Castle. Later in the day, a national two-minute silence will be held, followed by an RAF Red Arrows flypast. The King and Queen will meet veterans and their families at a remembrance service, with further events planned at Windsor Castle this autumn.

Japan’s Reflections

In Tokyo, Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba led a government ceremony stressing the importance of peace. “We should never repeat the devastation of war. We will never ever make a mistake in choosing the path to take,” he said, adding that lessons of the war must be “engraved deeply in our hearts.”

Thousands visited the Yasukuni Shrine to honour Japan’s war dead, though the site remains controversial because it also enshrines convicted war criminals.