The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs has estimated that the number of living American veterans from Second World War will drop to approximately 66,000 in 2024, less than 0.5% of the total who served.
About 16.4 million Americans fought in the 1939-1945 war, and more than 400,000 of them lost their lives. By 2023, only 119,000 veterans were still alive.
"The people of the generation who fought and won the war will soon no longer be able to share their stories. It is our responsibility to preserve their memory and share their stories with future generations," emphasised Michael Bell, director of the Jenny Craig Institute for the Study of War.
Next year, marking the 80th anniversary of the end of Second World War, only a handful of American veterans will remain, most of whom will be nearly 100 years old.
