The commemorative march titled 'In the footsteps of the Romanian heroes fallen on the Western Front - Hungary, Slovakia, Czech Republic', organized by the Ministry of National Defence, through the National Office for the Cult of Heroes, on the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II, arrived on Wednesday at the Heroes Cemetery in Oarba de Mures, where several thousand Romanian soldiers lost their lives.

It is estimated that 6,753 Romanians lost their lives in the battle of Oarba de Mures, 897 of whom were killed, 4,118 wounded and 1,738 missing, with some sources even indicating that 11,000 lives were lost.

The deputy commander of the Special Operations Forces Command, Brigadier General Gabriel-Ovidiu Ursachi, pointed out that Romania made a significant contribution to the campaign in the West after August 1944, with around 500,000 soldiers taking part in the liberation of Hungary, Czechoslovakia and Austria alongside the Allied troops.

'The Western campaign began on Romanian territory. The heroes' cemeteries are silent testimonies of the courage and sacrifice of the Romanian soldiers, the soil of the country preserving the traces of those sacrifices. We are today on this ground sanctified by the blood of our heroes, in Oarba de Mures, where history was written with pain, but also with dignity. Eight decades have passed since the terrible confrontation in the autumn of 1944, but the echo of the sacrifice here still sounds today in the consciousness of the Romanian nation. Here, in the fight for the liberation of Northern Transylvania, over 11,000 soldiers were sent on their last mission, some without saying goodbye to their loved ones, but they knew one thing: that they would defend their homeland, their honour and the future of the Romanian nation. Oarba de Mures is not only a place of sorrow, but also a symbol of courage to the point of sacrifice. It is the place where sacrifice has become eternal and where history is deeply ingrained in the hearts of those who do not forget. With hearts full of respect and gratitude, we bow our foreheads to those who put honour, freedom and love of country above their own lives,' said Brigadier General Gabriel-Ovidiu Ursachi.

He emphasised that the past must not be forgotten and must be assumed by the current generations.

'In the current context, this anniversary reminds us how fragile peace is and how important it is to defend it through solidarity, dialogue and respect between peoples. The Romanian Army assumes this legacy with honour. In their name we continue to watch over peace, the security of the country and the preservation of national dignity. Let us never forget that today's freedom bears the footprints of yesterday's footsteps and sacrifice. Eternal glory to Romania's heroes!,' said Brigadier General Gabriel-Ovidiu Ursachi.

The director of the National Office for the Cult of Heroes, Colonel Dan-Mihai Dinca, said that it should always be remembered that Romania's existence today as an independent, sovereign and democratic state is due to the Romanian heroes who died on the battlefields in the two world wars, but also to their comrades in arms and war veterans who managed to survive the horrors of war.

'I feel extremely honoured to be here today in Oarba de Mures, a place of deep historical resonance for what meant the horror of the Second World War, when the Romanian Army fought both on the Eastern and Western Front, but especially fought to defend the national territory. We are here together today, in Oarba de Mures, to honour the strength, courage and heroism of over 230,000 Romanian combatants who took part in the battles for the liberation of Transylvania, fought between September 20 and October 25, 1944. Words are scarce in the face of the sacrifice of over 6,000 Romanian soldiers who perished in the most significant battle of the Romanian Army during the Second World War, fought for the reunification of the national territory,' said Colonel Dan-Mihai Dinca.

The place where the fighting took place in the Oarbei de Mures area was called Valea Plangerii (Valley of Tears) by the locals, in memory of the Romanian soldiers who died there.

'In order that their effort and sacrifice may never be forgotten, I would like to bring to your attention an excerpt from the memoirs of one of the participants in the battle of Oarba de Mures, serviceman Cozac Marcu, of the 83rd Turda Infantry Regiment, a veteran of World War II, who recorded how the Romanian soldiers fought. Quote: 'They took us to Oarba de Mures, on the Chetanilor Hill. We had heavy fighting there. One night they attacked all of us, from 23:00 until morning. The enemy sensed us and machine-gunned us with all kinds of shells, they made a mess of us, the airplanes from above were strafing us, we hid under the hill, under the bushes, under the leaves. We didn't know where to hide. We fought there for four or five days. We finally drove them back, but the water of the Mures was all red from the blood of the fallen soldiers'. I am particularly moved by the fact that we are gathered here today at the Heroes' Cemetery to commemorate the 247 fallen Romanian soldiers buried in individual graves and the unknown soldiers buried in the two mass graves,' said Colonel Dinca.

Captain Mirela Vita from the Information and Public Relations Department of the Ministry of National Defence told AGEPRRES that the first stop of the commemorative march 'In the footsteps of Romanian heroes fallen on the Western Front - Hungary, Slovakia, Czech Republic' was, on Wednesday, at the Cemetery of Romanian Heroes of the Second World War in Oarba de Mures, to be followed by the Romanian Heroes' Cemetery in Budapest (Hungary), the Romanian Heroes' Cemetery in Zvolen (Slovakia) and the Romanian Heroes' Cemetery in the Central Cemetery in Brno (the Czech Republic).

A ceremony was organized in Bucharest, on Wednesday, at the Heroes of the Fatherland Monument, with one of the participants in the march, Lieutenant Colonel George Olteanu, wounded in the theater of operations in Afghanistan in 2011, reading a list of 10 soldiers who died and are buried in the cemetery of Oarba de Mures, and several speakers evoking many names of soldiers who sleep their final resting place in this place.

According to him, patriotism is not obsolete, it still exists, both among the military and the population.

'Patriotism still exists in us, especially in the military. This is what we are preparing for. I believe that in case of need, mobilisation would be as expected. I don't think that patriotism has been lost and if necessary we will respond to defend the homeland,' said Lieutenant Colonel George Olteanu. AGERPRES (RO - writing by: Dorina Matis; EN - writing by: Simona Iacob)