According to Polish and international media reports on Thursday, U.S. Vice President J.D. Vance could represent the United States, but the Auschwitz Museum has not confirmed it.
The main event will commence on Jan. 27 at 4:00 p.m. local time before the historic gate of the former Auschwitz II-Birkenau camp. Survivors, official delegations, and other participants will gather under a large tent, partially covering the site’s original structure.
Survivors will address attendees—an integral moment of the ceremony. Ronald Lauder, president of the World Jewish Congress, is expected to speak on behalf of the museum’s benefactors, while Piotr Cywiński, director of the Auschwitz Museum, will extend thanks to supporters. Clergy of various faiths are to conclude the ceremony with prayers, including the Kaddish and Psalm 42, followed by tributes from survivors and heads of state delegations.
Earlier in the day, survivors accompanied by Polish President Andrzej Duda will place wreaths at the “Wall of Death” in Auschwitz I to honor those murdered.
Delegations and special guests
According to museum officials, around 50 former prisoners—considered the event’s most esteemed guests—will attend. The final number of state and organizational delegations currently stands at 54, from Albania, Australia, Austria, Azerbaijan, Belgium, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Israel, Italy, Canada, Kosovo, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Latvia, Malta, Mexico, Moldova, Monaco, North Macedonia, Montenegro, the Netherlands, Germany, Norway, New Zealand, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, the United Kingdom, and the Vatican.
If confirmed, the U.S. delegation—potentially led by Vice President Vance—would become the 55th. Several heads of royal families, including King Charles III of the United Kingdom and monarchs from Belgium, Denmark, Spain, and the Netherlands, will be present, along with 19 presidents. Senior representatives from the European Commission, European Parliament, European Council, the Council of Europe, NATO, the United Nations, UNESCO, and the Sovereign Order of Malta are also expected.
The Auschwitz Museum noted that delegations decide on their own composition; Russia is not invited due to its invasion of Ukraine. President Duda holds honorary patronage over the event.
Germany built Auschwitz in 1940 to imprison Polish citizens, later adding Auschwitz II-Birkenau in 1942 as a primary site for the extermination of Jews. Over 1.1 million people—mainly Jews but also Poles, Roma, Soviet prisoners of war, and other nationalities—were murdered in the Auschwitz complex and its subcamps. Soviet troops liberated the camp on Jan. 27, 1945. The date is observed worldwide as International Holocaust Remembrance Day.
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Source: IAR, TVP Info