World War II began in 1939, fuelling a global conflict that would engulf much of Europe. As Nazi forces expanded their control, they swept through neighbouring countries, using a combination of military might and ideological motives. By 1941, Germany had launched Operation Barbarossa, a brutal invasion of the Soviet Union, marking the beginning of a new phase in the war. The National Socialists (Nazi), headed by Adolf Hitler, aimed not only to conquer territory but to extirpate entire populations they deemed inferior, including Jews, Slavs, and Roma. 

Roma people living in the territories occupied by the Nazis faced Genocide, often referred to as the "Porajmos", resulting in widespread suffering and mass murder. Genocides were committed in mass scale not only on the territories of the Third Reich (Germany, Austria and other annexed territories) but also in Czechoslovakia, Poland, Denmark, Norway, Belgium, the Netherlands, Luxembourg, France, Yugoslavia and Greece. Members of Axis (Italy, Hungary, Romania and Bulgaria) also participated in those policies. On some occupied territories local Nazi supporters with the strong support and approval of Hitler established so-called “Independent States”, including Slovakia and “Independent State of Croatia”.

During the Nazi occupation of the Soviet Union in World War II, Roma people faced a horrific Genocide at the hands of fascist forces. The Nazis, driven by their racial ideology, considered Roma to be "undesirable" and sought their systematic extermination. Thousands and thousands of Roma were rounded up, deported to concentration camps, and murdered in mass executions. This Genocide, often overlooked in comparison to the Holocaust, decimated entire Roma communities across the country.

Hitler’s National Socialists’ (Nazi) racial ideology was deeply rooted in the belief in Aryan racial superiority and the dehumanization of non-Aryan groups. In his political manifesto “Mein Kampf” ("My Struggle") Hitler argued that non-Aryan groups, especially Jews, Slavs and Roma, were racially inferior and posed a threat to the purity and strength of the Aryan race. He advocated for the extermination or subjugation of these groups, as well as the expansion of German territory to secure the survival and dominance of the Aryan race. This racist ideology fuelled the Nazi regime's policies of persecution, Genocide and war.

Roma, considered "asocial" and racially inferior by the Nazis, were labelled as "Gypsies" in derogatory terms. Their historic nomadic lifestyle and perceived outsider status made them particularly vulnerable to Nazi persecution. Under the Third Reich, Roma were subjected to discriminatory laws, forced sterilizations and put to concentration camps, and were also caught in the brutal machinery of mass murder that characterised the Nazi Genocides.

The Nazi regime's goal in this sense was clear: to rid Europe of all "undesirable" elements, including Roma. While the Genocide of the Jews, referred to as the Holocaust (Shoah), is well-documented and widely recognized, the Roma Genocide is much less well-known and largely overlooked in history. It is extremely difficult to cite exact numbers of Roma and Sinti killed during the war due to lack of recorded data, and it goes in many thousands. The occupied territories of the USSR were places where these atrocities happened as well. Based on available data, about 30 thousand Roma people from those territories were killed.

When Nazi forces invaded the Soviet Union in June 1941, the territory became one of key focuses for their Genocidal policies. The Nazis were particularly focused on nowadays territories of Ukraine, Belarus, and the Baltic States, where large Roma populations lived. As the German army advanced, Roma were subjected to mass arrests, executions, and forced labour.

Roma living under Nazi occupation were particularly vulnerable to the mobile killing squads known as the Einsatzgruppen. These death squads, which followed the German army’s advance, were responsible for executing Jews. Later, that task was extended to Roma, communists and other categories. In many cases, Roma were shot in large groups and buried in mass graves, often in the forests or outside of towns.

In addition to the Einsatzgruppen's mass shootings, Roma were also deported to concentration camps, including Auschwitz, Treblinka, Salaspils, Buchenwald and others. There Roma were subjected to inhumane conditions, forced labour and horrific medical experiments, resulting in the deaths of tens of thousands. The notorious "Gypsy family camp" in Auschwitz became one of the places of mass extermination for Roma, where many were gassed, starved or killed by disease. 

On the night of August 2nd to 3rd, 1944, the Roma and Sinti camp at Auschwitz-Birkenau was liquidated. Thousands of Roma and Sinti men, women and children were murdered in the gas chambers by Nazi officers, and their bodies were subsequently burned in large pits.  Of the 23,000 Roma and Sinti people imprisoned at Auschwitz-Birkenau, it is estimated that over 20,000 were ultimately murdered. The anniversary serves as an opportunity to remember the Roma and Sinti individuals who were killed under the Nazi regime and is now observed as Roma Genocide Remembrance Day.

During the WW2, collaborationists played a crucial role in aiding the Nazis in carrying out their genocidal policies. These collaborators were individuals, groups, or governments from occupied territories who actively assisted the Nazis in the persecution, deportation, and extermination of Jews, Roma, and other targeted groups. Their collaboration ranged from providing logistical support and intelligence to directly participating in mass killings.

In Western Europe (France, Belgium, Netherlands, Norway and others), local police forces, militia groups, and Germany appointed officials helped the Nazis round up Jews and Roma for deportation to concentration and extermination camps. In Eastern Europe, particularly in territories like Ukraine and Lithuania, local nationalist groups and collaborators often played a direct role in the massacre of Jews, Roma and other victims of the Nazi regime. These groups, sometimes motivated by a mix of ideological alignment and antisemitism, helped facilitate mass shootings, raids and the establishment of ghettos.

In Croatia, the Ustaše regime, a fascist group aligned with Nazi ideology, was responsible for the brutal treatment and systematic murder of Jews, Serbs, and Roma, including the establishment of death camps, the biggest of which was Ustaša Concentration Camp Jasenovac. In Hungary, collaborationists also assisted in rounding up Jews and Roma for deportation to Auschwitz and other extermination camps, particularly in the later years of the war. 

The Romanian government, led by the pro-fascist dictator Ion Antonescu, aligned itself with Nazi Germany and actively participated in the atrocities of the Genocide. He aimed to create a Romania free of national minorities, particularly Jews and Roma, believing that national strength came from racial purity rather than territorial borders. Romanian authorities, with the heip of local collaborators,  arranged mass deportations, rounding up Jews and Roma and sending them to concentration camps where thousands died from violence, starvation, and disease. Large numbers were also executed in mass shootings, this policy resulting in the deaths of an estimated 280,000 Romanian Jews and tens of thousands of Roma during the Genocide. 

The Genocide of the Roma during the Nazi occupation of the Soviet Union remains one of the most under-researched and under-acknowledged aspects of World War II. Much of the historical focus has been on the Holocaust of Jews, with little attention given to the parallel Genocide of Roma (Porajmos), despite their suffering being equally horrific. In the post-war period, the Roma were left without much recognition or support in the aftermath of the Holocaust, and their suffering was often overlooked or dismissed.

Holocaust denial in the Soviet Union was a complex and politically charged issue, often tied to ideological and propaganda motives during and after World War II. While the Soviet Union played a key role in defeating Nazi Germany and liberating concentration camps, the Soviet government downplayed or ignored the scale of the Holocaust, particularly the systematic extermination of Jews. For much of the post-war period, Soviet authorities framed the Holocaust within the broader context of the fight against fascism, focusing on the suffering of all peoples under Nazi occupation, especially the people of the Soviet Union, while minimizing the specific targeting of Jews and Roma. As a result, the suffering of those communities during the Holocaust remained largely unrecognized within Soviet discourse, with the genocide becoming a taboo subject in public education and official narratives. Fortunately, the denial of the Holocaust has significantly diminished in recent decades, with numerous scholarly works and studies now published to ensure the accurate remembrance and understanding of this horrific chapter in history.

Today, the legacy of this Genocide is still felt within Roma communities across Europe. The trauma passed down through generations, coupled with the continued marginalization of Roma populations, contributes to the ongoing struggles they face. Efforts to remember and honour Roma victims of the Porajmos (Genocide on Roma) have been gaining momentum in recent years, with increasing calls for more education, recognition and reparations. Memorials and museums dedicated to Roma victims of the Porajmos have been established, and researchers continue to uncover and document the experiences of Roma survivors.