From Czechoslovakia to Ukraine: Festival views Russian invasions through foreign eyes

When Warsaw Pact tanks crossed into Czechoslovakia on Aug. 21, 1968, the world was watching. From diplomatic cables in London to protests in Paris and New York, the events reverberated far beyond the streets of Prague.

This perspective is at the heart of NeverMore 68, the annual festival returning to Prague Exhibition Grounds on Aug. 21 for its fourth year. Running from 2 p.m. to 11:30 p.m., the program blends exhibitions, debates, film screenings, and eyewitness testimony to examine how the invasion was documented, discussed, and understood abroad.

"This year, we are focusing on a foreign perspective to show visitors how the governments of states on both sides of the Iron Curtain, the media, and civil society reacted to the occupation of Czechoslovakia in August 1968," says organizer Barbora Šubrtová.

The theme is made more poignant by the sizable Czechoslovak community in Britain in the late 1960s, Šubrtová notes.

The British Embassy in Prague and the British Council will showcase declassified diplomatic cables, government meeting notes, press coverage, and protest photographs in British Perspective: August ’68 through a British Lens.

Created in cooperation with the Czech Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the exhibition highlights both solidarity and the Cold War–era sense of moral responsibility. The topic will also feature in a panel discussion with Robert Smith from the British Embassy.

An exhibition about the life and work of the writer George Orwell and the Czechoslovak reflection on his work presents the Orwellian year 1984 in Czechoslovakia, repression against opponents of the communist regime and expressions of solidarity with political prisoners.

The British perspective is only one piece of a larger international perspective. Further exhibits including On the Waves of Freedom marking 75 years since Radio Free Europe’s first broadcasts to Czechoslovakia and 30 years since its move from Munich to Prague.

The exhibition charts RFE's role in countering state propaganda through personal testimonies from the Memory of a Nation project, including rare recordings from August 1968.

Poet Against the Occupation tells the story of Russian poet Nikolai Braun, who was sentenced in 1969 to prison and exile in the Soviet Union for writing three poems in support of occupied Czechoslovakia, a defiant act that became a lasting symbol of resistance.

The audiovisual stage will feature Thanks for the Chance & National Film Archive: Uninvited Guests, revisiting how the 1968 invasion reshaped Czech cinema. Four short films and two newsreels, once banned for capturing the occupation or Jan Palach’s death, testify to a period when censorship silenced filmmakers.

Also screening is Occupation Through the Eyes of Foreigners, a Memory of the Nation montage combining amateur invasion footage with memories from Western visitors and a Soviet soldier caught in Czechoslovakia on Aug. 21, 1968.

The festival also presents contemporary reflections on propaganda and power. In Křižík Pavilion B, visitors can follow the all-day live stream of A Gift for Putin, featuring interviews, live entries, and commentary from various guests and the public display of an F18 simulator.

The day culminates with a screening of Robert Kvalipl’s new film The Great Patriotic Trip (Velký pástenecký výlet), a satirical exploration of war, heroism, and state messaging in Russia that blends humor with sharp critique.

“The current global mood, as well as history itself, constantly reminds us of how important it is to defend freedom, democracy, and values such as respect and esteem for the human person. This year, NeverMore 68 will once again remind us of these values and why we should never forget the year 68,” says Tomáš Hübl, head of the Exhibition Grounds.