On 14 May 2025, at the Central History Point in Warsaw, "1945 – The Year of New Enslavement. The Experience of Central and Eastern Europe" discussion took place. It featured Prof. Karol Polejowski (Deputy President of the Institute of National Remembrance), Edvins Evarts (Museum of the Occupation of Latvia), and Áron Máthé (Committee of National Remembrance – Hungary).

For the rest of Europe, May 8 marked the end of warfare on the continent. For us—countries of Central and Eastern Europe—one occupation was replaced by another. Countries like Latvia were annexed by the USSR, while Poland and Hungary seemingly retained their independence as socialist states; in reality, they were dominated by the Soviet Union, said Karol Polejowski, Deputy President of the IPN, during the discussion.

The participants focused on the significance of the Ribbentrop-Molotov Pact for the fate of Central and Eastern European nations, as well as the short- and long-term consequences of the Red Army’s 1944–1945 offensive and its occupation of captured territories. They also discussed the role of local communists and other political groups in establishing the totalitarian regime, along with the current state of research into the legacy of communism in the region and unresolved communist crimes.