11-11-2025, Brussels

On the Belgian national holiday, "Reconciliation Day" (Jour de l'Armistice), a memorial service (panikhida) for fallen Russian soldiers, was held at the Ixelles cemetery.

The Ixelles cemetery in Brussels contains thirteen graves of Russian soldiers who died in World War I for the freedom of the Kingdom of Belgium.

Traditionally, on November 11, the Belgian national holiday, "Reconciliation Day," the Embassy of the Russian Federation, the Archdiocese of the Russian Orthodox Church, and representatives of various émigré public organizations and the Russian diaspora gather at the war memorial in the Ixelles cemetery in Brussels.

This year, the memorial ceremony began with an address by Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Russian Federation V.D. Gonchar, who noted the military assistance of the Russian state in defending the Kingdom of Belgium and France during World War I. Following this, wreaths from the Russian Embassy in Belgium, the Russian Cultural Center, and various public organizations were laid at the memorial to the fallen.

At the end of the ceremony, with the blessing of Archbishop Simon of Brussels and Belgium, the diocesan clergy performed a memorial litany for all the slain leaders and soldiers. A trio from the archdiocesan youth choir sang at the litany.